DBZ-Senshido
by RV-Xrd
Summary: What does it mean to be a warrior? What is this pride Saiyans possess? Is it all about being strong just because or is there more to it? What is it like to be a warrior race? Rikku was never raised on planet Vegeta. He does not understand his Saiyan heritage. Is a warrior just a fighter or a protector? If a protector what exactly does he protect? (Includes Super)
1. Prologue

**Yeah, so this is my first fanfic on this site yadyadayada. Please be nice blah blah blah. So yeah. One thing though, I'm a bit iffy on the power levels so if anyone could help me out that'd be great. I will be modifying them at various points in the story, because you know Vegeta wasn't always at 18,000. Not that I will be quoting power levels all the time. It's just for the Frieza arc.**

 **Disclaimer:** **I do not own Dragon Ball Z. I'm just writing about it with the wishful thinking that I do.**

Prologue

Kaku moved around the hut, throwing punches and kicks in various combinations one hit per step. He was bare-chested, dressed only in white baggy pants. His brown hair was a giant curly brown mess on his head that fell down to the base of his neck. He went around another lap and stopped at the front door of the hut to take a breath. His fair skin was slick with sweat.

Next to him on the doorstep Nikki sat playing with her long copper hair and messing with a little baby at the same time. She was the cute, shy one and fairer skinned than her brother. The hut was made of simple gray stone and had very little features on it. It's owner wasn't much for decoration or luxury. The owner didn't even like the way Planet Vegeta was run, always calling them "Prideful Saiyan bastards." He always complained how all they ever seemed to do was fight simply for fighting's sake.

Kaku grinned to himself, well aware that he was a Saiyan too and would have done much the same had it not been for this old man teaching him the importance of being a warrior for his now drastically reduced family.

 _A warrior isn't just a fighter. It is what you fight for that makes you a warrior…_

It was because of the old man that Kaku had stopped going to cock fights to earn money and rather farmed here with him for something to live off of. A five year old could only win so much to support his four year old sister and baby cousin. There'd been some good training thrown into the bargain too which Kaku, of course, excelled at. When you were a Saiyan, it came with the package.

He watched Nikki play with their baby cousin for a while. They really had no idea what to call him so they just used pronouns and adjectives. His parents had died and they both had no family so they had taken him along with them to the streets. That was until Ran came along and beat him to a pulp. Then he took them in and things moved from there.

While Kaku was taking a break the man himself stepped out of the hut. Ran was powerfully built despite not being particularly buff. He was all hard well rounded muscle concealed with a white toga and sandals. His bronze skin was healthy and smooth, belying the warrior he really was. His face was swallowed up by a bushy black beard and moustache and his hair hung in a black curtain over his forehead and some of his eyes. Could you have seen them, you would have noticed that even his eyebrows were bushy. He didn't look particularly strong or interesting. Mostly, he just looked confused.

"Hey, Ran-san," Kaku greeted.

Ran, turned his not very noticeable gaze on Kaku and sat next to Nikki on the doorstep. He pulled the baby's cheek absently, in a gentle manner. He inclined his head toward Kaku and just sat for a bit. Kaku noticed he wasn't speaking and raised an eyebrow. "Is something wrong?"

"I've been called to a council meeting," Ran explained in his quivery voice, "But I feel really lazy right now and I don't want to go so I'm procrastinating. "

Kaku gave an amused sigh. Ran was like that sometimes. He could be a very strange sort of man if you weren't used to him. It was weird to see someone quite so honest about their wrongs.

"Why's he calling you?" he asked the older Saiyan. "What if it's important?"

"I don't know. Probably, King Vegeta has finally run into a problem that fists won't solve I think. Just go train for a bit, practice firing your Ki for a while and I should be back by evening. If anything happens, just wait for me in the temple and you'll be safe."

Kaku nodded. "So you're going then?"

"Yes, yes I am."

The old man said it like he was going to a funeral or something. He patted Nikki on her cheeks and stood up. She looked up at him and smiled, offering a little wave. "Bye. Get me a present, please?"

"No promises."

Stepping a few feet away, Ran flared his ki and blasted off into the distance surrounded by a strong blue aura. Kaku stared after him for a while and then proceeded with his training while Nikki kept playing with the baby.

By sun down, Nikki had gone inside with the baby and was presumably asleep. Kaku however was still training. He was doing his katas interspersed with the odd ki blast at pre-determined targets, but he was distracted. Ran was not back yet and he was getting worried. The wind was cold at night, and all the brown and red of the plains had become white and grey. The moon looked much, much bigger.

Kaku stopped his katas for a moment, looking up into the glowing night sky. Was the moon _purple_? The plains had taken on a very dark look and the night sky was not blue but purple. He sat down and just stared up into the sky admiring the glowing purple moon. The night was cold and many creatures had gone silent. Nikki and JR were probably long gone too. How long was Ran going to take anyway?

Without realizing Kaku fell asleep, only noticing he did when he found himself waking up to... a glowing sky? Since when did the sky here ever get this bright at night? Or glow purple for that matter? It was then that he noticed what was really going on. Even with his unhoned senses Kaku could feel incredible Ki coming towards him like nothing he'd ever felt. That had been no moon…

Kaku shot to his feet, knowing what this was. He began to run, tearing into the hut desperately.

"Nikki!," he shouted, even as he zoomed through the door.

He knew it was futile at this point. Where did you run? Where did you hide from something like that? The space pods were on the other side of the planet and that was further than he could fly in the amount of time left. Kaku felt defeated. He had no ideas. But he ran anyway, he woke his sister up anyway and he sprinted out of the house, dragging her with his baby cousin in hand anyway.

"Kaku, why? What's going on?" Nikki asked as he ran.

And he was about to answer.

But the moment he stepped out the door, the last thing he saw was the wall of flame that rushed to meet him.

 **AN:So, again help with the power levels. Also, I kinda feel like this was a boring prologue. But that's why I'm here isn't it? To improve. So please review so I know what's up. And review so I can respond. That means no guest reviews. Some times I do certain stuff on purpose, I'm spontaneous that way so I need a way to reach you to be sure that it wasn't something I intended to do.**


	2. Chapter 1

**Hey, I'm back again with another chapter. Was this rushed? It feels like the pace is too fast. If it is, let me know will you?**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Ball Z. But I want to.**

 **Chapter 1**

Throughout Frieza Outpost 244 loud booms could be heard. This happened frequently whenever the strong soldiers trained together. Being a space outpost, it was equipped with a training room because there was nowhere else to train, but a single room no matter how big could only handle so much.

In the cafeteria, Vegeta growled in irritation as his plates of food vibrated dangerously, multiple times. It didn't help that the table looked flimsy. No one in the room wanted to cross him simply because he was strong, a cut above the average soldier.

The Saiyan gritted his teeth. _Those two are going at it again…_

 _Frieza Outpost 244, Training Room_

I skidded as I was pushed back. I was currently training with Naya Kirisame, a soldier under Frieza, same as me. We were both Saiyans, found by Prince Vegeta on a mission to the planet we'd been staying on and we'd served under him ever since. It was our routine when not on a mission to train in the mornings until afternoon. We usually ended up creating a need for repairs and bothering anyone who happened to be eating but you couldn't afford to be weak in the Frieza Force. As it was, the average power level of the Frieza Force was two thousand and Naya and I were barely in the three thousands.

The Training Room was a large circular room with a blue tiled floor and white walls. It was about sixty feet in diameter in my estimation; designed to handle the stress of battles that weren't very kind to their surroundings. The ceiling hung about fifty feet up. This outpost was one of the biggest. It was more of a space station really.

Naya stood opposite me, muscles tensed as she awaited my next barrage. She was tall and lean, with well defined muscles. Her brown skin went well with her short messy black hair although her hair had these gray strands in them I always made fun of. Her brown eyes were wide with excitement, her small mouth curved in a smile. She had a baby face. She was dressed in a simple black crop top that exposed her flat belly, straight white trousers that stopped at her ankles and black sandal like boots. Her tiny bangs hid her forehead from sight. Despite her slenderness, she had muscle. She kept her tail wrapped around her waist like a brown fur belt.

I was taller than Naya and just as lean. I had brown eyes and short curly black hair. My dark bronze skin rippled as I flexed the muscles beneath it in preparation for another series of attacks. I generally had very narrow eyes but this time I was especially focused. Naya was no joke. I was dressed in a black vest and white trousers with the same sandal like boots. We also wore the same black forearm guards. This essentially, was our training gear made specifically for our combat style. I didn't like to keep my tail wrapped and let it hang free. I even used it sometimes.

I dashed toward Naya, lashing out with a kick. She floated up and to the side and retaliated with a hook kick. I stopped her leg with one arm but she leaned forward and hooked my arm with it, shooting off a knee to my chin with her other leg. I was sent flying up toward the ceiling, spinning uncontrollably.

I brought myself to a stop in mid-air and looked around wildly. She'd disappeared!

"Spiral Trap Shot!"

I whipped around just in time to see her fire five balls of Ki from each finger all at once, each one as big as my torso. They spiraled around each other, homing in on me. I powered up, releasing a blue aura, and dashed through the air with an explosive kickstep, zooming through the gap in the middle of her attack and slamming into her with a flying kick just as she raised her arms in a cross block. The force of my attack still blew her back and she crashed into the wall of the training room at the exact same moment her Trap Shot hit the other wall. The room rocked. All the soldiers below wobbled on their feet. Some even fell over.

Naya broke free of the training room wall and aimed her hand at me. "Shin Shiito!" (Death Sheet)

She fired a flat beam of Ki at me. I powered up again, and zoomed out of the way, flying around the training room in an effort to get behind her. She kept tracking me but she was falling behind. Soldiers were thrown aside in my wake by the sheer force of my movement. I flew up from behind just as Naya whipped around with a heavy punch. I caught it, flipped over her and threw her to the ground. She stopped herself before she could hit and zoomed back up before I could recover. Naya collided with me with a solid knee to the stomach. I literally curved around her knee, the breath whooshing out my lungs. But even as she hit me I grabbed her torso and flipped her over me. Naya twisted, trying to right herself. Before she could do anything at all, I kicked her hooking my foot to round out the attack and throw her instead of actually hurt her. This time she was so surprised she couldn't react in time and crashed into the floor with great force. Shrapnel from the impact flew up stinging my entire body as I fell to the training room floor as well.

I landed next to her too out of breath even to let out grunt from the impact. More accurately, I landed next to the small crater she was in. My stomach hurt, and breathing was difficult.

She smiled. "Looks like we draw again."

"If… you…wanted to…finish me now… you could", I wheezed. "I lost this time."

She snorted with amusement, closing her eyes.

"What because you're out of breath?", she asked. "Well, if you haven't noticed I'm a bit stunned right now. Most I can move is my fingers."

"With… effort then", I said derisively.

She laughed. "Jerk!"

I smiled. My breath was starting to come back to me. Around us the soldiers of Frieza were running around scared because no doubt we'd managed to make Vegeta angry, and he was currently the only elite in the Outpost. The thump of their white boots sent vibrations throughout my entire body. It was like a massage. Very helpful.

"'Least their good for something", Naya commented.

I grinned, realizing she had thought the exact same thing.

She glanced at me out the corner of her eye and grinned as well, and then she stopped. "But you held back."

I sat up as my breath fully returned to me, resting on one arm. "I promise I took you seriously."

"I know you did," she said. "But you didn't want to hurt me, did you?"

I shook my head. "I freely admit it. No I did not."

Naya also sat up, chips of the floor tiles falling aside. She shook her head and began pulling them out of her hair. Messy as it was it had trapped a few. She growled in irritation as she encountered a particularly resistant one.

"Should I help you?" I offered.

"No, I got this. We're talking about you and your reluctance to fight seriously."

"I did take you seriously!"

"Relax, I'm getting there."

She whipped the last chip out of her hair and shook it violently to get the dust out.

She stared up at me finally.

"Look, Rikku" she said earnestly. "You're pretty strong, and you're really good at this stuff. I know you take all your fights seriously-"

"Except when the opponent is a joke," I muttered.

"That too", she said. "What I'm saying is that you don't fight to your fullest."

I knew that. I didn't fight to my fullest potential usually. I didn't know why I was like that. No matter what I couldn't bring myself to truly finish off an opponent with all the skills at my disposal. I did what was necessary and nothing more. One could almost call me a pacifist if I didn't kill my opponents. Or mind doing it for that matter. Maybe I was just lazy. I'd been called that often enough.

"I understand that you're serious whenever you're in combat", Naya said, "But you never use your maximum potential even though it's clear that you have above average ability. You're talented in lots of different things but you never once do your best."

I sighed. All of it was true. I couldn't help it. That was simply the way I was.

"We're warriors now", she continued. "And this lax attitude can get you killed in terms of combat. Were we normal people it wouldn't matter but now… The thought bothers me, I'd rather not lose any one else. I wouldn't be able to take it if even the Prince of Nowhere died. We're the last of our kind."

I sighed again. "I know but there's not much I can do about it, you know? I just don't feel motivated."

Naya stood up and stretched her whole body straightening in a medley of cracks. I winced. That sounded… uncomfortable.

"Unless we forced you somehow…" she said. "But I think you're better than that. You'll do what's necessary. You always do."

"Stop thinking about it", I said to her, standing up as well and bouncing on my feet to loosen up. "I can handle myself."

She pouted. "You're making me look like a worrywart now."

"Deal with it," I said looking around the training room.

Naya stopped teasing and followed my lead.

"Ah, the Prince of Nowhere…" she commented, her mouth curling into a smile.

Vegeta stormed through the ranks of Frieza's soldiers clearly, in a bad mood. Well more bad than usual. Vegeta was rather on the short side with spiky black hair that met at a ridiculous high point at the top of his head. His black eyes were slanted in a perpetual frown and his short, muscular frame was constantly tense. He was dressed in the standard battle suit and blue tights underneath that. He also wore white gloves and boots, in addition to a red scouter over his right eye. He also- like most other Saiyans except for me- kept his tail wrapped around his waist.

"You know if he weren't so strong the jokes about his height would be endless…"

Naya held back a snort. "Shut up. You'll just make things worse at this rate."

"Tell me it hasn't occurred to you-"

"You!"

"Whatever you do don't say midget."

"You're the one cracking jokes!"

Vegeta stopped in front of us, a vein popping on his forehead. Come to think of it his forehead was quite large too. _Windscreen anyone?_

"What do you two think you're doing?" Vegeta growled.

"Training," Naya said expressionlessly.

"And do you think it's intelligent to disturb your Prince?" he spat, eyes narrowing further.

"No Kingdom, no king and therefore no prince either," I said.

Vegeta glared at me. "A Kingdom is not the place but the people. I am still royalty!"

"I never imagined such a wise saying could be used so selfishly."

"I know right."

"What?"

"Nothing," we said innocently.

"Anyway," he continued, crossing his arms. "This should be the last time this happens again, am I clear?"

We saluted. "Yes, Boss."

The vein on Vegeta's forehead swelled even more. He got in our faces, fists curled in rage.

"It's Prince Vegeta!"

"Yes, Boss."

Vegeta looked like he was going to blow.

Then Nappa came and saved our butts. Our bald Saiyan senior poked his head into the room and called out to Vegeta.

"Hey Vegeta, Your lunch is getting cold so I thought I'd come get you."

Vegeta frowned and I chose then to smile at him peevishly.

"Wouldn't want that food to get cold would we?" I asked. "I mean really, you're kind of wasting your time right now. Saiyans are supposed to be strong and we get stronger with training. Win-win, yes?"

There was a pause laden with tension. He looked like he was debating whether or not to vaporize us on the spot. Finally, Vegeta just huffed and turned away. "Fine, I don't care what you do, just don't disturb me again."

"Whew," Naya breathed as he walked toward Nappa. "Even though he does this all the time it's always pretty tense huh?"

"Must be something with having a power level of eighteen thousand and flaunting it shamelessly," I muttered.

"And he says it like it doesn't scare him at all," Naya commented with a huff. She scrunched up her small nose and looked away from me.

"Don't make me disgrace you," I threatened.

She whipped around. "What?"

"You heard me," I said with a grin, raising my hands and wiggling my fingers. "You forget that I know you're ticklish…"

She blanched and tensed in warning. "You wouldn't-"

"Are you daring me?" I questioned her.

"I hate you."

"I know. You might want to run away now."

She turned and flew down the corridor in a blast of ki knocking aside other soldiers in her way. I grinned even wider. She knew I wasn't going to chase her after all we both lived on the outpost together, there was nowhere to run to. So I walked leisurely toward the barracks, whistling the entire way. I could always get her later.

When I got there Naya was on her bed with a book in hand. It was a novel of some kind. The barracks was just a grey spherical room with beds built into little alcoves in the walls. Special units such as ours got one to ourselves while people like Vegeta had their own rooms. So in this particular barracks, there were only five beds and of those five only two were owned.

I sat on my bed, which was the one right next to Naya's.

"You took your time," she said, flipping a page. She'd taken off her boots revealing a pair of small feet, one of which was busy getting entangled in her bed sheets. She tended to fidget with her feet, a habit I was also guilty of.

"Yeah, well," I said, laying down on my bed and staring up at the roof of the alcove. "You knew I wasn't going to chase you."

She smiled, still reading. "I wanted the extra time alone. By the way, you going to wear your glasses anytime soon? You haven't worn them since morning. The double vision must be kicking in by now right?"

"Doesn't matter if I fall asleep," I muttered, suddenly tired. I lay there with my eyes closed for a bit.

Things had been boring in the Frieza Force lately. There were no really good planets to conquer in Frieza's name, all the races we'd come across were weak and because of that squads like us didn't get much to do. The usual cannon fodder could handle that. Things were really calm for us, and frankly it was driving me stir crazy because there was nothing to do except train. Unlike Vegeta and the others, my life did not revolve around training twenty four seven.

"Naya, I'm bored," I complained, still with my eyes closed.

"Yeah, me too. So what do you want to do?"

"I don't _know_. That's why I'm telling _you_."

I heard her sigh. "And what did you expect _me_ to do?"

"I don't _know_. Something."

"You're really insufferable sometimes you know that?"

"It's all part of the charm," I said, with a smile.

She snorted. "Riight… I'll just pretend I didn't hear that. Just go to sleep or whatever you want for today. I'll probably think of something for tomorrow."

"You know when you say it like that it kinda feels like it's the evening but it's only afternoon, not that you can tell since we're in space-"

"Oh my God, Rikku fall asleep already!"

 _Frieza's Spaceship, Command Centre_

"Disappointing," the figure in the shadows said. "These are the feared warrior race you offer me Frieza?"

In, the command center of Frieza's space ship the lights had been turned off leaving the projection on the giant window that usually showed the vista of space as the only source of light. Frieza sat in his little floating pod, with his Generals Zarbon and Dodoria on either side of him. The stranger was at the back of the room looking at the screen while Frieza was on the platform directly below the screen.

The diminutive emperor replied, "Now, now hold on, they do have potential. The boy you see on the bed had a power level of just five hundred when he first arrived and now he's a lot stronger than the average soldier. His rate of growth is impressive. All of them were like that. Vegeta, their Prince is particularly strong."

"And that is why, you annihilated them?" the stranger interrupted. "Frankly, you don't look so hot either, a mild entertainment maybe."

Frieza actually looked afraid for a second and raised both arms in a defensive gesture. "That won't be necessary. They're a lot more dangerous than they look. With this rate of growth give them a few years and you'll be golden."

Next to him, Zarbon and Dodoria nodded in agreement.

"But you would kill them before they could ever surpass you," came the response.

It was a statement of fact, one that Frieza was well aware of. But he wouldn't kill them because the chances of that were very low. Frieza was short with pink arms and pink thighs, the only defensive things on him were his black battle armor and the white hard exterior of his bio armor on his torso, forearms and legs. And he had horns, purple lips and a big purple head. He was not intimidating. What was intimidating was his power and he couldn't have anyone stronger than he was. But to tell this person that they probably wouldn't get stronger than himself if he let them live that long would make him a target.

Frieza came up with the next best alternative. "That's why I'm selling them to you. Like merchandise. Once they're yours you can do as you please with them without interference from me."

"Selling them?"

"Ok, I'm giving them to you. You can have any two you want," Frieza said quickly. Self-preservation was always important.

There was silence as the stranger thought about it. "Fine, I want those two in the room. Their fighting style interests me. They seem different from the other three. Send them to these coordinates and I will test them for myself."

Something came flying out of the darkness and Dodoria caught it in his big pink hand.

"A deal then," Frieza agreed.

There was only silence in response, and then a sudden recession of an ominous presence. Frieza turned and looked up at the projection, watching the two Saiyans in the barracks. The girl and the boy… Vegeta had found them on some planet somewhere on his way back from the Planet Shikk, realizing they were Saiyans too. He already blew up their planet and lied to Vegeta that it was a meteor. How was he going to get away with this one without killing the Prince? The Saiyans were useful, almost like another weaker Ginyu Force and he was loathe to waste good resources. Very few soldiers were quite as strong as they were.

"Lord Frieza it seems he's gone," Zarbon confirmed, kneeling in deference behind Frieza.

"We'll be losing good resources," Frieza muttered, displeased. "I can't believe I'm doing this."

Dodoria remained silent behind Frieza. He was not for deep thinking. But that was why Zarbon was there.

"If it bothers you so much why go through with it at all, Lord Frieza?" Zarbon asked, looking up.

"Because, Zarbon my father told me that there were three things I should never challenge in this universe," came the reply. "Beerus, Majin Buu and… _his_ kind."

"Send a message to Outpost 244," Frieza ordered. "The sooner we get out of his sights the better. We need to find a way to get rid of him once and for all. Until then, we aim to please."

Zarbon bowed his head. "At once, Lord Frieza."

 _Frieza Outpost 244, Training Room_

"You're joking, right? This is what you could come up with?"

"What did you expect, a sports game? Reality check, we're in _space!_ "

"I know but still… I expected better."

"Oh, and you can do better?"

"To be honest probably not, I was content to leave everything to you."

"I really don't know why I bother asking…"

Naya and I sat cross legged in our training gear on opposite sides of a single tile in the training room (This time I was wearing my glasses. They were clear and had no frame around the lenses). We each had four paper squares in front of us and in the exact middle of the tile was a scrunched up ball of paper. It was a game of paper ball. Yesterday, after my nap we had- before we took our showers in the respective shower rooms- decided to skimp on training today for a day of fun and this was what Naya was able to come up with. Frankly, it was disappointing.

Around the room grunts were practicing various shots on each other with dummy guns. They were the cannon fodder, soldiers so weak they needed weapons to fire their ki because they couldn't do it themselves.

"Maybe we could request a transfer to somewhere more fun," Naya suggested, looking at me.

"Oh please, which planet has Frieza conquered that has any fun?" I countered. "You can even tell by the names. Frieza Planet 12, Frieza Planet 5. You'd think he'd be a lot more creative with all the free time he has. It's all death and destruction and sadness for the inhabitants and wealth and riches for Frieza and his buyers, none of which we get a taste of by the way. Not like that lizard uses it for anything, not even entertainment. Destroying things _is_ his entertainment."

"You could be more optimistic."

"We both know optimistic equals liar."

"Oh, so a pessimist is telling the truth then?"

"No, he's being depressingly stupid."

Naya laughed and leaned back on her arms. "You're a jerk. I must have said this before."

I smiled. "You have been known to say it on occasion."

"Hilarious," a voice cut in.

I looked up in surprise and saw Vegeta looking back down at me. _How did I not see him coming?_

He glared at me with his arms crossed and said, "A new mission came in for you two specifically, straight from Frieza's ship. Since Raditz went and died I would have preferred for the two weakest Saiyans to be with either Nappa or me at all times during missions until I deem them fit to be left alone. I have no use for weak Saiyans, but I do wish to preserve our race."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence right there," I said wryly. "Touched my heart, that."

Vegeta ignored the comment."I really don't have a choice so I'll only say this once: Do not die."

"So what's the mission anyway?" Naya asked him with a raised eyebrow.

"Some random planet that needs purging as usual," Vegeta said, closing his eyes. "Considering it's going to be you two by yourselves I estimate a week. For some reason the cannon fodder aren't considered strong enough to deal with the inhabitants and neither are the lower level soldiers, so Frieza is turning to us."

"Why not you and Nappa then?" I asked him.

Vegeta averted his gaze just a bit, almost unnoticeably. "We have business of our own to handle."

I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. I didn't like how he answered that question. It was good to listen to what people were saying but sometimes it was even better to listen to what they _didn't_ say and right now Vegeta was _not_ saying what business he could possibly have that would be different from ours. We were all soldiers and all we ever did was purge planets in Frieza's name and sell them for money. With him and Nappa on our side, completing the mission in a day was not unreasonable. Heck, a day would probably be stretching it.

"Your attack pods are being prepped as we speak, all you have to do is get in and wait until you get there," He said. "The base on Frieza Planet 79 will be monitoring your mission so you should have good intel. That is all."

"That's it? It sounds boring," I said. "It's basically the same old."

"Does it matter?" Naya interjected. "At least we have something to do now."

She was right. the entire reason we were sitting here playing with paper was because we had nothing to do. Plus, a good fight was enjoyable even if it was one-sided. Maybe we'd even get lucky and meet someone worth fighting on that planet. Who knew?

"I'll let you take it from here," Vegeta said.

He walked away from us without looking back once. Nappa, the bald and much bigger Saiyan, met him at the door. He handed Vegeta a red scouter, donned a green one and then they both went out the door.

"Finally, a mission," Naya said, uncrossing her feet and standing up. "Let's go change and get off this dump."

"Yeah…" I said, getting to my feet.

"I saw the way you looked at Vegeta," Naya observed, looking at me. "You think something's up."

"Yes, I do," I admitted. "I just don't know what it is. Vegeta has been on the space scene a lot longer than us and I have no way of knowing what he could possibly be up to. Plus, I want to give him the benefit of the doubt. He did pick us up when we were little."

Naya considered this briefly. It had been twelve years ago that he came for us on that Planet. I was a walking bundle of rage and aggression and Naya had been too small to take carry her weight in any family. It was there that Vegeta had come for us both, when we had no one else who would take us in. He almost killed us like the others but I had put up a fight. He realized then what we were and took us with him.

"Then let's go we're wasting time," she said eventually.

"Right. I was bored anyway."

* * *

 **AN: Yeah, so the power levels anyone? I know they really aren't all that useful but the Frieza Force relied on them a lot so help please. Ooh, and tips and pointers will be appreciated. If I miss a crucial fact as well, feel free to say something. Dragon Ball Z hasn't been the most consistent show so stuff can be hard to pinpoint.**


	3. Chapter 2

**Hey people I'm back with another one. Wow, this took a while to what with all that other stuff going on in that thing called life. I finally figured out the power levels so no need for that anymore. Also, I was convinced to put up some power levels so it's easier to tell how strong the characters are. After much consideration, I have decided to do this only up until when Frieza reaches third form because the numbers get fuzzy thereabouts. For the rest of the story you will simply have to rely on how much energy the characters can sense coming off each other at different points in time.**

 **Rikku: 3250**

 **Naya: 3470**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball Z. But when I dream, I own it all.**

Chapter 2

 _I glared up at those fools, vibrating with anger. All I could comprehend was how angry I was, all I could understand was the pure rage I felt flooding my soul. I wanted to pulverize these people, grind them into dust with my bare hands._

 _"Leave kid," one said, making a shooing motion. "You're not wanted here. Get lost before we kill you."_

 _His hand reached_ _ **far**_ _too close…_

"Rikku, wake up."

I jolted awake in the space pod and wiped my face with one hand to get the sleep out of my head. "I'm up."

Naya's voice came in through the scouter hanging loosely off my left ear. I fastened the thing properly, the green lens covering my left eye. I took stock of my combat outfit, checking if anything else was out of place. I was in a simple skin tight, long-sleeved blue shirt with black wrist guards at the end of my sleeves and baggy blue pants. On my feet, I wore black high top sandals (Think boots with open toes and open heels). Over the shirt, I wore white battle armor similar to Vegeta's but without the crotch and upper thigh guards or the shoulder pads. It was more like a vest. Everything looked good.

Having finished, I sat up straight in the seat of the pod.

"Took you long enough," Naya said over the comm link. "We're about to make entry. Don't want you butting your head against the door again because you didn't brace yourself."

"Gah! When are you going to let that drop?"

"Knowing me, probably never."

"Geez, so petty," I said, looking through the window of the pod.

The endless vista of space greeted me, stars dotting the expanse and giving it a glittery look. Against this backdrop, was a green looking planet, dotted with the odd spots of blue here and there. It looked very nice, Planet Veridia according to Frieza Planet 79. It was apparently full of excessively large wildlife and possessed absolutely no sentient races worth mentioning both in terms of power level and intellect, but still I supposed I could treat it like a camping trip. A camping trip of annihilation…

The pod started shaking violently as Veridia loomed closer and its gravity began to take hold of the small spacecraft. I braced myself in my seat, ready this time for any unwanted ejections. Heat began to build up as the attack pod caught fire, painting the entire interior red. I shut my eyes, trying to endure the heat while the planet suddenly filled up the window pane. Why were there no heat regulators? What model was this any way? Ignoring the extreme heat, I looked at the side of the panel and realization dawned.

 _Those bastards gave us the old attack pods…_

I was so killing them when I got back, Frieza's displeasure be damned; friggin' techies in their shiny glasses and stupid white lab coats.

Steam erupted from the attack pod and blocked the environment from sight as we finally plunged into the atmosphere of Veridia. I simply closed my eyes and waited for the inevitable bone jarring impact. The pod hit the ground with the force of a bomb, tossing me around in the seat despite my bracing myself. The shock of the impact ran through my body from my feet to my head and left my ears ringing violently. For, several minutes I was jolted in so many directions I felt like I was standing on the epicenter of an earthquake.

When things finally calmed down, the door to the pod opened to reveal part of a large steaming crater. After taking a few minutes to gather myself together, I finally grabbed the side of the door and used it to lift myself out of the pod. I floated into the air, taking a look at our surroundings.

The first thing I noticed was that we were surrounded by trees, huge skyscraper trees that made me feel like an insect. As it was, I was flying at the base of a root. And there was so much green everywhere! The grass was green and, thankfully, normal sized, the leaves of the trees somewhere in the heavens blocked most of the sunlight and gave the place a calm green hue except for the large spot of clear sunlight where my attack pod had cleaved a hole into the canopy. The temperature too was refreshingly cool, especially after the boiling pot the attack pod was when I was incoming. I was _not_ going back in that, even if I had to fly through space somehow.

A loud boom sounded throughout my little meadow, and I whipped my head toward the noise, noting the plume of fire that flared to life in that direction. I gave her a few minutes before I tapped my scouter.

"How was the landing?"

"I've felt better,"came her terse reply. "I'm sure this was done on purpose. My engine's busted and all the controls are steaming."

I floated down to the pod and looked inside to be sure the same did not hold true for me. No dice, all my controls were sparking miserably, the pod itself still smoking. I paused for a moment, unsure how to proceed. Why were we given old and defective models? Obviously, we were either wanted dead, not wanted back or it was a genuine mistake that the techies were unaware of. Either way, if things went south there was no escape route. I didn't like this at all.

There was a slight whistling as Naya flew in from her own attack pod and came to a stop above my own. I flew back up to her height, shaking my head to inform her that my pod was also out of commission. This cancelled out the genuine mistake theory, for one thing if it was a genuine mistake it would take an extreme amount of luck to have us both have exactly the same type of malfunction at what was essentially the same time. Suspicious didn't even begin to describe how I felt, but mostly I was just angry. Someone was going to pay…

"I see your pod decided to quit the team too," she observed, eyeing the useless husk of metal.

Naya was dressed in a black tank top, hidden by her white battle armor. On her arms she wore the same forearm guards from our training session, mainly because Naya's blows tended to be destructive, sometimes even for her. Then came baggy blue pants and the same sandals as me. Frieza's battle armor rarely allowed for much variation when it came to clothing and the sandals were to keep our feet light. It wasn't a twin thing or anything like that.

"Good job detective," I praised her.

She punched me on the arm with a smile. "Don't you sass me."

"My arm just went numb," I said as I rubbed it to get the feeling back.

"You really shouldn't hurt yourself like that Rikku," Naya scolded, with a finger pointed at me in reprimand.

" _What? You're_ the one who hit _me,_ " I protested.

"Sorry to disappoint you but you brought this on yourself."

"Well, when you put it like that…"

"Listen, can we focus now?" she said, frowning. "Something isn't right and we still have a Planet to purge."

I nodded and rolled my shoulders. "Way ahead of you actually, while I was bugging you I scanned for the highest power level on this planet just to be sure of things. It's exactly three thousand. Mission specs say to destroy any sentient life higher than five hundred and all carnivorous wildlife."

Naya looked stunned for a second, staring at me with disbelief. Her green scouter hung over her left eye, making the brown look black. Eventually, she just shook her head.

"Let's just get a move on."

"What? No reply," I asked, grinning as we both flew out of the clearing and into the gigantic forest.

"Rikku, shut up."

 _Veridia, Kaloa Tree_

The man shifted in the darkness, not that you could see it. He was cloaked in the shadow cast by this, the biggest of trees on this silly backwater planet. Around this tree, other trees with dark, very dark green leaves covered the surrounding area. The locals called this the Shadow Grotto, where the death god resides. He smiled at that, knowing that he was no god. He was just a very, very, very strong warrior who happened to have decided this was his home for the duration of his mission.

Two loud booms rolled across the clearing, interrupted only by the trees surrounding him. Those of the local animals that could fly took to the air, crowing, screeching and something that sounded mysteriously like belching…

 _The prey has arrived and the hunt begins._

 _Space, En route to Earth_

"Vegeta?"

"What is it, Nappa?"

"Do you think we should have gone with them?"

Vegeta sat with his eyes closed in the attack pod, slightly irritated because he'd been about to fall asleep. He'd heard all about the Dragon Balls on E-arth from when Raditz went there and he knew that with them he could wish for immortality and finally become Frieza's superior. It didn't do that the Prince of all Saiyans was serving under some lizard. He had no use for the Frieza Force, it was the principle of the thing. Heck, he'd probably destroy them all because really who needed them? With immortality he would be invincible, able to challenge whoever, wherever, whenever he liked. Then the universe would know the might of the Saiyans and cower at his feet. To delay that for those two weaklings was foolish. Yes he picked them up, but he did so because they were Saiyans. Had that not been the case, they would be dead and Vegeta would not be caring. As it was, they were barely useful to him. Nappa seemed to have gotten slightly attached to them and Raditz hadn't really paid them much attention, especially when they got stronger than him. Vegeta had no use for weak Saiyans and telling them not to die would achieve nothing.

They weren't really Saiyans anyway. They didn't have the same mindset as someone raised on the Planet Vegeta. They were ruthless and deadly alright, but they were softies in their own right, disinterested in training and fighting unless it was "fun." They were proud of their strength but they took no pride in fighting like a true Saiyan would. They couldn't see the glory! Rikku alone acted like a friggin' switch, jumping from wanting to spar to despising the idea. They were arrogant too, in an annoying way, like they knew something you didn't. The memory of their last confrontation floated up in his mind.

 _"I never imagined such a wise saying could be used so selfishly."_

 _"I know right."_

 _"What?"_

 _"Nothing."_

They replied in sync, dammit. Frankly, if they died it would be a blessing but Vegeta had to keep up appearances. For one thing, if he failed to find the Dragon Balls during the short break he was using to go to E-arth he would need them on his side when Frieza found out his treachery, if only as meat shields. Also, Frieza needed to believe he could get to Vegeta through them because that would mean Frieza actually had no idea how to deal with Vegeta outside of brute force, and with immortality on his side it was clear who would be winning that one. Those brats could take care of themselves, middle class warriors like them were hardly worth the trouble of an elite like him.

"Vegeta?"

"No, Nappa. The answer is no. We stay on course, we get the dragon balls and wish for immortality. Then, I kill Frieza."

Nappa didn't seem too bothered. "Sure, Vegeta."

Vegeta sighed. The way this man threw his name around, honestly… He only ever used the title when Vegeta scared him. He was going to have learn at some point, that a Prince was not someone's whose name could be bandied about quite so freely whether he raised him or not.

Vaguely, Vegeta wondered if Rikku and Naya had noticed that the lab boys in charge of their pods had given them old, defective versions. Frieza was obviously already making his move in trying to crush him but he would see… The Prince of all Saiyans is hardly beaten so easily.

 _Veridia,Trieste Village, one week and three days later_

Shadah was very worried these days, mainly because his father was very worried these days. Village after village had been destroyed in the past week by some unknown force, and now everyone was worried that the Erven was making his rounds; something he hadn't done in over a thousand years according to legend. Some held the idea was that he was a control put in place to monitor the population while some others praised him as a weapon of the gods put in place to make sure they behaved. What was a given was that he was there, whether you believed it or not.

Shadah shambled along on his furry green legs. The Veridians were all built this way with very little variation: Stocky, muscular frames covered all over with fur except for their faces. The fur was what was used to tell them apart as a Veridia was never the same colour as another. Of course, they were all capable of transformation to their second form and there one really saw the difference. The Chief was the most powerful, once having punched one of the great trees that formed part of the Shadow Grotto out of the way when it almost fell on the village.

So what could possibly defeat entire villages at the rate at which they'd been disappearing? Nothing on Veridia that was for sure.

After a few more minutes of walking, Shadah made it to his Father's tree cave and shuffled in. There his father lay sprawled out on his leaf bed with his spear on the ground. His father, Sanza was the biggest of them, a great hulking mass of red fur, leadership and fighting ability. He was also the most handsome, with a dark lovely face, a small well sculpted nose and intoxicating red eyes. He was scary in more ways than one.

"Ah, Shadah," his father said in greeting. "It's about time you arrived."

"The thing or things destroying the villages still haven't been found yet if that's what you're after," Shadah responded without a change in expression. He was not as handsome as his father or as powerful and so the villagers tended to look down on him. He had a fairer skinned face and green eyes and while he was nice to look at he did not look much different from the average Veridian whereas his father had a unique, attractive beauty about him.

"No, no that's not it," his Sanza said with a frown. "It's still about the same issue though."

Shadah raised a green eyebrow in surprise.

"I want this threat eliminated immediately," his father said. "This is no Erven, it has already wiped out over half of our surface villages. Only those hidden below the roots of the trees such as ours have survived, frankly not even the Erven would wipe us out. He seeks balance above all, as it is written. I want you to find this threat and destroy it once and for all."

Shadah started. "On my own?"

His father nodded. "Yes, or is that asking too much?"

"No, no, no I'll get right on it," he said waving his arms in protest.

This was his chance to defend his people and show what he was really capable of. No one would look at him like he was a failure once he succeeded. He quickly ran out the door, leaving his father staring at thin air.

"He was quick to the mark," his father said, musingly. "He didn't even hang around to hear the rest. The only reason I'm sending him is because our entire fighting force has been eliminated. Everyone else has little to no mastery over the second form."

Sanza stood up, picking up his spear. It was time for him to move out too.

 _Right now it's down to him and me… whoever or whatever this is it has to be stopped. Now._

 _Veridia, A Destroyed Village_

I watched the flames burn up the corpses with my arms folded, more than a little peeved. How the hell were we not told these natives could transform?! Especially those ones that came in groups and shouted different tactics to each other mid combat as if we would have no idea what they were trying to do. It had set us back three days so far and I was bored by day three of this mission. They were at that annoying brink where they were strong enough to do damage if they hit but so weak they usually never got the chance. Naturally, I was upset because this whole operation was taking too damn long.

We'd basically been flying around looking for settlements and destroying them if the inhabitants met the criteria set out for us. We killed the local wildlife for food and slept in the treetops, high up as they were when we were tired.

Around me, the straw houses were set aflame by small energy blasts and collapsed into a smoking mess. The smoke floated up above me into the blue morning sky, the yellow sun filtering bright sunlight down onto the pile of soot that used to be a village of some kind. Naya floated down to my side and said, "We're done here, let's go find the next one."

I sighed, "Why don't we just stop and leave anyway? It's obvious we've been betrayed."

"I get you, I really do," she said, looking at me with concerned brown eyes. "That's how I know you've already figured this out. If we have been betrayed we need to know why so we know how to respond. Right now, our only way is to go through with the mission and search for a way off this planet while we're at it. Also, we can't show that we know that we've been betrayed or abandoned in some way to throw off whoever set us up and give them doubts. That way they'll be off balance and make a mistake."

"But we saw the attack pods…" I said.

"That could be a problem," she admitted with a shrug. "But you still see a way through that, don't you?"

"We're Saiyans so we're not considered to be very smart outside of battle," I said grudgingly, kicking a pebble in the ash. "They would most likely figure we put it down to engine malfunction and look for the next fight."

"Which is what we're pretending to do right now," Naya finished, putting a hand on my shoulder. "So come on."

I let off another sigh and floated up with her where I unfolded my arms and powered up, a strong blue aura bursting into existence around me like a flame. Naya did the same, and then we both turned and flew into the forest, leaving the burned settlement behind.

As we blazed through the forest I let my mind wander, choosing not to watch my surroundings. I found myself wondering vaguely if Vegeta knew this would happen, the way he averted his gaze welling up in my mind. Even if he didn't, he was definitely doing something he didn't want us to know about. As I, wandered about in the maze of my head I realized something.

"Naya," I called over the wind blowing in my face.

She looked at me inquisitively. "What?"

"Did we torture anyone for the location of the next village?" I asked.

She swore.

 _I'll take that as a no then._

So now we would have to comb the entire planet until we found one, and this place was big. That was another few days at least. I growled in irritation, annoyed at the prospect of staying even longer. I increased my energy and boosted ahead in a lame effort to get things over with. We spent the entire day searching but found nothing that we hadn't already destroyed. We flew over meadows, glades, rivers, ponds and everything in between on this backwater forest planet. A few of the local wildlife thought we were food until I blew a hole in their stomachs. I was in no mood for delays.

By late afternoon, I had resigned myself to a month at least of searching. We stopped to rest in one gigantic clearing that really would have qualified as a plain or something. It had a stream that was really more like a river. There was a giant pig thing with tusks and paws that attacked us but one good boot between the eyes delivered us our lunch, and it wasn't even all cooked and tasty we just roasted the thing with consecutive energy blasts and ate it. I loved food, but I loved _good_ food and that was crap. Naturally, it put me in a foul mood.

I sat cross legged, throwing aside the giant leg bone I'd been chewing on and wiping my mouth. As soon as Naya was done, we'd be on the move. I watched her eat idly, crossing my arms. It was then that in my moment of absolute boredom that, like a savior, the scouter blipped and displayed a reading across the lens. I could barely contain my joy when a green blur burst out of the forest, homing in on me.

I shot to my feet and whirled, punching my attacker and sending them sprawling several feet back. I raised one hand up, placed the other at my hip and turned to my side, spreading my feet and bending my knees: A basic fighting stance. Beside me, Naya stopped eating in surprise, frozen mid bite into the ribs.

"You eat, I'll handle it," I said, keeping my gaze level.

My opponent stood up, wiping red blood off his mouth. Like the rest of the inhabitants he was stocky and muscular with brightly coloured fur. He glared at me with vibrant green eyes, his fair face scrunched up in anger. This one was easily my height.

"You're what's been killing our people," he said, angrily.

I said nothing, rather preparing myself mentally for the fight. I needed to focus. This guy had a power level of two thousand nine hundred and sixty. Not a threat but probably more of the challenge than the other guys, and who knew he might actually know how to fight.

"You've wiped out over half of us," he growled. "I saw you destroy that village today. I know how strong you are now and I won't lose!"

"You saw us and you did nothing," Naya broke in. "To be honest all your warriors were a disappointment. It's just a mission, nothing personal."

She thought about it. "Eh, who am I kidding it is personal. Attack if you wish but when we're done, you're going to tell us where the rest of the villages are."

"That's if you can beat me at all!" he roared and charged with a straight punch.

I blocked it and shoved him back, then followed up with a kick to the ribs. He blocked it and shot a kick of his own to my face. I caught it, and smiled. This guy was actually pretty good, a lot more fun than the other ones at least. This would be interesting. I shoved him back and changed stances to a looser one, bouncing on the balls of my feet.

I raised my hands to chest level. "Ok, let's go."

He charged again but I stopped him with one foot then knocked him to the side with a spinning hook kick. He recovered with a heavy blow aimed at my ribs but I dodged to the side and slammed him with a side kick, sending him stumbling. He turned back and jumped, hitting me with a tornado kick. I blocked it but was still pushed back. He rushed me at that moment, pressing the advantage and following up with several punches all of which I dodged until he faked me with a right hook, staggered me with a left cross and blasted me back with a palm thrust.

I was sent skidding for quite a few feet, but kept my footing, leaving two small troughs in the ground. I looked up to see his foot about to collide with my face head on. I moved to the side and smashed his leg into the ground with a hammer fist, then drove a punch into his stomach that folded him over and hit him into the air with a knee to the face. He back flipped several times and landed on his feet but the instant he landed and I knocked him backward with a flying knee to the jaw. The green guy slammed into the ground some distance away, rolling for several feet.

"Slow," I commented, bouncing on my feet once again. "Your jaw's not going to take another like that."

 ** _Naya_**

Naya threw aside the last of the ribs she was eating and stood up, dusting her pants. She watched the fight with her scouter on, monitoring their power levels. She was interested, not because this green dude had the highest power level so far but because watching Rikku fight was always a lesson. She liked how he fought, so calculated, so skilled. He was all about the feet like her, using his punches to create space and drive the opponent back then using his feet to do the real damage.

He wasn't as powerful as she was, but what made him stronger than her wasn't his power level. Rikku was a talented fighter, simple as that. His rate of adaptability was impressive, his ability to track and understand the flow of battle, impeccable. Then there was that infernal speed of his. His style was nice to watch, graceful smooth and fast. He could glide past attacks and strike instantly, a style based on mobility. Until you saw Rikku bouncing on his toes, he wasn't taking you seriously. That bouncing was a technique to increase the speed and power of his attacks. It also increased the speed of motion, the trick being to have your every move work in sync with the rise and fall of each bounce. He called it "Bo".

And he didn't win because of sheer physical ability like she did usually. Even when Rikku totally outclassed you in strength, he preferred to read your attacks and counter them with different strategies rather than outright over power you.

 _It's a far cry from what you used to be like, back then you were practically violence incarnate ready to turn on anyone at the flip of a switch. Rikku, you've really come far…_

Naya shook her head. She didn't want to think about that. Those things were things that should be left alone, left in the darkest part of her memory. Rikku had been like a wild animal and nothing like the calm, annoying but reassuring presence he was now and she had been such a fool, believing she was needed… well forget that. Rikku had crushed them, there was no longer any reason to think about them.

She knew Rikku still dreamed about it, she heard him sometimes in his sleep. But he never said anything and he never seemed bothered by it, not even a little bit. She'd asked him once and he'd simply said, "Life goes on, whether you're hurting or not."

She found herself smiling. He was simplistic like that. She watched Rikku send the green Veridian flying with a well-timed spinning back kick. She figured he had the guy's style down by now.

 ** _Rikku_**

I sniffed and rubbed the side of my nose. "You're slowing down."

"Don't get so high and mighty yet," greenie spouted, wiping the blood off his mouth yet again. "I can still transform."

"Oh yeah, I almost completely forgot about that," I said, gesturing for him to go ahead. "Well, do it. I'd like to see how far you can go since you've lasted the longest so far."

The Veridian growled at me and then suddenly brought his hands to his sides in a classic horse stance and began charging up a huge amount of energy. An emerald green aura roared to life around him, tearing up the ground and levitating rocks. I stared as the scouter numbers began to soar. The Veridian suddenly got bigger and more muscular, growing fangs and claws. His fur darkened to almost black and his eyes glowed all green. Finally, the aura exploded outward in a blast of light before settling back around him and then fading away entirely.

The scouter numbers leveled off at ten thousand, leagues above what the others had been like. I raised an eyebrow in surprise, I'd expected him to be brushing five thousand at best. I heard Naya gasp in surprise and take a stance.

I waved a hand. "No, I got this. He doesn't look any different from the others so I'm guessing he's not the leader. The leader might be even stronger than him, so it's better to have at least one of us at max power. Considering you're the stronger between us two I'd prefer it to be you."

Naya grudgingly stood up straight, a show of the trust she had in me. "I hope you have a plan then, 'cause this difference is worrying."

"He may be stronger than me," I said, beginning to bounce once again. "But I have two advantages here. He can't fly and I'm a better fighter."

The Veridia let out a roar and charged much, much faster than before. I barely got my block up in time before he knocked me flying with a punch. I drilled into one of the trees surrounding the giant clearing, sitting inside the trunk like I was on a throne. I groaned as I sat up, taking a moment to recover. My arms hurt where he hit me. I pulled myself over to the opening, slowly to give more time for recovery. Ok, so he was going to be a problem. I saw him rush Naya, but she stopped his blow with a glowing blue kick of her own, a technique of hers slightly more advanced than filling her foot with energy. They struggled for a mere half second and then Naya was knocked flying. I blinked in surprise realizing the threat here. I was going to have to take him out now.

"Hey, smiley!" I called.

I powered up, blasting tree fragments aside with my aura and then launched myself forward with a kickstep that split the giant tree in half. I zoomed through the air, spun and slammed my foot into his solar plexus with an energy infused flying kick in the instant it took him to turn around. He folded over like a sheet of paper. I quickly stepped off, spun around him and booted him forward onto his hands and knees. He lay there retching for a bit.

I took that chance to take stock. He was way stronger and faster than us, that was for sure. That attack I'd used just now was my Hirameki and it had destroyed its fair share of monstrous things. I'd once split a city in half with it and yet this guy didn't even move an inch. Admittedly, I did deck him with it just now but to be able to take that much and give such a simple reaction. He was tough, but right now he was all brute force. All I needed to do was apply the basics of fighting. His movement speed had increased yes, but I'd realized this transformation of his had done little to the speed of his reflexes considering his inability to dodge my kick. His power was what had changed but with such a large difference in skill between us that wasn't going to be much of an issue, hopefully.

The Veridian finally got to his feet and glared at me, with his glowing emerald eyes.

"Well, someone's gonna wizz red," I said with a smirk.

He attacked me furiously with a flurry of punches and kicks. I dodged and weaved, guiding his attacks in the opposite direction with my palms instead of blocking them head on. He growled and pushed even harder, trying to overwhelm me. I redoubled my efforts, skimming the ground as I fell back under the assault. The force of his blows were incredible, one solid hit would seriously wound me. As it was I was just pushing his attacks to either side and yet he was forcing me back. There was a loud creaking sound that grew ever closer, but I couldn't afford to be distracted. Of course, it chose now to come down. I'd split it in half ages ago and it chose now…

I swore and dodged a right hook, jammed the heel of my toes into greenie's chin to slow him down some and zoomed out of the way just when the giant tree slammed into the ground where we had been fighting. The shockwave of dust caught up with me and almost knocked me to the ground but I released an extra burst of energy that helped me fly clear.

Wait, where was Naya?! I searched the area, looking around wildly and growing increasingly worried. Finally, I saw her floating higher up than me, looking down at the fight with some amount of anxiety. I turned back and took a breath, satisfied. If she was all the way up there she wouldn't get caught up in it. There was no point in losing my cool right now. A loud roar drew my attention. The area where the Veridian had been caught by the tree blew up, seemingly from the force of the scream.

The Veridian leaped out of the debris straight at me with a punch cocked back. I simply drifted to the side and watched him zip past. He landed clear of the dust and timber from the fallen tree, turning back to glare at me.

"How?" he demanded. "How can you keep up with me? Why can't I hurt you?"

I floated down and stopped inches off the ground. He _was_ hurting me, little by little. My bruised arms would attest to that and my aching toes had more than a few complaints from when I booted his chin. I was just deflecting most of the damage that I couldn't dodge. I was in pain, the trick was not to show it and make him try to hit me harder. Then if I simply countered his attacks, I could turn his insane power against him. Essentially, I was trying to make this guy hurt himself. He had the techniques and the power but his battle sense was really poor. This guy was not a fighter despite his moves and that was why he was losing. And it seemed that so far his transformation had only increased his movement speed. His striking speed also hadn't really changed much and I was faster than him to begin with, not just because I was stronger then but because the strongest point of my fighting style was speed and mobility. I trained to be faster in reflexes, motion and strikes all the time and so I had a tonne of ways to move quickly when I needed to. Of course, I wasn't going to tell him all that.

So I just stared at him with a stern look and waited for the inevitable rush. He leaped forward and launched another barrage while I dodged and redirected his strikes. Finally he threw a heavy right hook yelling, "Die dammit!"

I dodged past his hook and smashed him into the ground with a right hook of my own, cracking it and sending pieces of rock flying everywhere. I flew backward, skimming the ground, and took my Bo stance again. Of course I was flying so I couldn't bounce, but the principles were the same: mobility, speed and power. Flying provided the same principles on a 3 dimensional scale.

The dust from my strike suddenly blew aside to reveal the Veridian with his arms spread, having used a wave of force to clear the dust. He was panting, the entire left side of his face swollen with blood leaking from his nose and mouth. Throughout this fight, he should have had me dead to rights but it seemed aside from his fighting style this guy really had no idea how to fight, like how on some planets people thought once you knew the martial art you were a great fighter. He also seemed to have no idea how to use his energy too. No waves, no massive energy attacks, he didn't even seem to know how to mix the force wave with his combos. He really wasn't a fighter. Aside from the transformation, he had nothing worth mentioning.

I noticed my right arm trembling and tried to tense it up so it wouldn't show. Clocking him like that had hurt me too but I couldn't display it in any way, otherwise he would rush me and I didn't know if I could stand up to that with one hand and a half. I was starting lose control of my limbs, this fight needed to end _now_.

I took stock of what I had to finish him. First off he couldn't keep up with my Genpou (Illusion step), which was the kickstep I used to launched my Hirameki, at least if I caught him unawares. I had my Crush Cannon there as well, especially now that he was worn out. Had he been at full power it would have been a waste of energy but now after mindlessly attacking and chasing me all over he was tired, especially since he couldn't fly and had to run after me the entire time. Kusanagi (Grass Cutter) was iffy because if I missed I was dead.

The Veridian eyed me cautiously, standing up slowly and keeping his gaze leveled on me. Oh god, he was _thinking._

 ** _Shadah_**

He couldn't believe this. Here he was in second form, vastly stronger than his opponent and yet he couldn't beat him. Shadah had travelled all this way, followed them from the village they destroyed only to be beaten this way. How was the stranger able to beat him like this? He even floored him once! What was the meaning of this?! He knew his martial arts and he had this form, he should be winning! The thought of these scum who killed so many of his people defeating him annoyed him so much he found himself growling.

He stared at the one he was fighting, the one with his brown furry tail hanging free. The armor clad warrior looked back at him, eyes roving over every inch of him. Shadah wondered what he was looking at, his eyes should be focused on his opponents eyes. Well, so far he hadn't been able to dodge Shadah's charge in this form. It was the only attack as yet undefeated. Shadah made up his mind; it would be charge attacks from here on out.

 ** _Rikku_**

If I could wear him down a bit more and fire the Cannon when he couldn't react that would be great, preferably from point blank range. But I'd have to be fast and make sure not to get hit. I held my hands out further from my face, still in my Bo stance. This was going to burn a tonne of energy.

I took a breath, my aura flaring into existence, and charged straight at the Veridian with a Genpou and a trail of blue energy. He immediately tried to slam me into the ground with a hammer fist and in a flash I was delivering a hook to the side of his head, then a cross, then a front ridge and then- I dodged his retaliatory backhand with another Genpou and slammed into his other side with a snap kick, roundhouse, spinning hook combination. He started to turn again and I was on his other side, beating him with more attacks. He turned again and I was behind him with a side kick to the back, then I zoomed all around him with a series of Genpou's that had him looking wildly for me and then hit him with more combinations. I was so much faster than him I could get off two to three attacks in the time it took him to turn around. He whirled around, swinging both arms like a rotor but I was already safely above him smashing both feet into his head. I zipped away again.

He growled angrily and charged, deviously fast just like the first time but this time he couldn't keep up so his aim was off. He dashed off uselessly, opening his back to a well-placed flying kick between the shoulder blades that knocked him sprawling. I took off immediately after, staying on the move. He had realized his movement speed was fast enough to pin me down but his reflexes weren't good enough to keep up with me. This guy lacked the kinetic vision necessary to track my movements, and that was all it took to keep me in the game. I waited for him to stand up, still zooming around with Genpou. The second he stood up I zipped straight toward him with three balls of energy in the hand I threw back. The Veridian went for a charge yelling, "I see you!"

Holy!-

The world flipped and somersaulted wildly as pain screamed down my neck, shoulders and ribcage. Suddenly, I slammed into something solid and dug through it until I burst through the other side. I flew for several feet and crashed to the ground, rolling for several more before coming to a stop, my aura flickering lamely away. I groaned and rolled over, trying to ignore the pain. My head refused to move, my neck felt like it was bent the wrong way and my ribs were grating against each other, slammed together from when he collided with me. I choked as I tried to inhale, it hurt to breath. It probably didn't help that there was blood leaking from my mouth and nose.

A hand filled my field of vision and lifted me up by my right arm. It was the Veridian, smiling his teeth out with his eyes glowing viciously.

"I got you now," he crowed, pulling back a fist.

Suddenly, he bent backward violently and a black booted, energy encased foot slammed into the side of his head hard enough to knock him flying out of view. I dropped immediately, but I was caught before I could hit the ground. I looked up to see Naya frowning at me.

I struggled to get to my feet with her help. Eventually I succeeded, standing lamely with my arms hanging loose.

"You said you could take him," she accused me, her brown eyes flashing dangerously.

 _Oh dear, I've gone and made her angry._

"I've got this," I hissed, trying to breathe as little as possible. "I made a stupid mistake, that's all. I'll finish it now."

She kept up the glare for several seconds and then…

"I trust you," she said, her eyes softening. "Maybe to levels that aren't exactly healthy, but the second you look like you're going to get hit again I'm stepping in."

I smiled, looking around us to get my bearings. "That won't be necessary. We're at the finish."

I'd been body slammed through the tree I'd split in half. We were still in the clearing, and Greenie was going to come charging through that smoke cloud he'd left behind when Naya hit him any second now, because he didn't know any better. I charged three balls of energy in my right hand and held them out behind me. They started to spiral, around each other at speed.

Naya floated upwards, out of the way and stared back down at me. I stood and waited. Greenie did not disappoint me. He came flying out of the smoke as a dark green blur with glowing eyes. I ducked his punch, crushing the energy in my hand as I thrust it forward to his stomach.

"Spiral Crush Cannon!"

A stream of blue spiraling energy speared the Veridian, blasting him back until he slammed into one of the surrounding trees hard enough to send chips flying. I flared my aura, gathering up my energy for the final push.

"Where are the other villages?" I questioned him, my expression stern.

All I got was a roar of pain in response. We were going nowhere with this.

I gritted my teeth, my injuries starting to catch up with me. Dammit, I couldn't question him now and risk him surviving! I had to finish him. With a scream, I shoved all the energy I'd mustered into my attack. The wave grew exponentially, tearing into the Veridian with renewed force. The native screamed as the beam blasted right through him and the tree he was plastered to and eventually faded to nothing as I ran out of energy. I let my hand drop to my side, taking shallow breaths as my aura faded away. My chest clenched, making me wince. So maybe screaming hadn't been the best idea.

A smoking corpse with a giant hole in its torso fell from the tree and fetched up somewhere among the roots. This guy had been tough, but his lack of energy attacks and fighting ability ultimately put him at a disadvantage against me. I'd had to outpace him to win, which meant using another technique in combination with Bo and Genpou, the ultimate speed combination.

That was Chiiken(Short Fist), where I held my hands out further from me and thus closer to my opponent. Naturally, that meant my defense and attack power suffered, but the exchange in speed was meant to get the enemy blinking so they couldn't see the real attacks coming. In this case, I used it to harass him into wasting more energy trying to hit me.

A pair of smooth brown hands reached under my arms and lifted me into the air.

"You see, I won," I wheezed without looking back.

"Yes, yes you did," Naya responded. "But you got yourself messed up in the process. We're going to have to lie low for a long time so you can recover."

As we got higher up, I was able to see the extent of the destruction the fight had caused. The entire clearing was strewn with troughs in the ground, massive branches, splinters and rocks. The tree I'd knocked down divided the clearing in half while the one I'd made a hole in oversaw over it all, leaking black smoke. It reflected how I felt. This guy wasn't even the strongest and he'd done this much damage with practically no combat aptitude. And there was still the leader to think about and he was sure to be looking for us now.

I decided to let myself rest as Naya carried me away. There would be time for that later, first I had to survive my wounds then we could think about the leader. After that, we could find a way back and find out what was really going on.

My vision began to darken, as the fatigue started to catch up with me.

Sleepy time… Sleep was important…

 ** _(Unknown)_**

Well, well these Saiyans were a lot more impressive than first glance would have you believe it seemed. The man smiled, pleased with himself, as he watched the two leave the battleground. Even with such a large gap in power between him and his opponent the boy was able to come through alive. Not only that, he was on top of the battle for most of the fight. If one combined that with the rapidly increasing strength of the Saiyan race he could see why Frieza feared them. Someone like him would be easily overtaken by such a race given time, especially when their arrogance and pride were legendary.

He would give them time to recover and complete their 'mission'. After that, he'd like to test their potential for himself. He wondered really, how they weren't using their max power. Surely in such a situation it would have been prudent to use it? He had noticed aboard Frieza's ship that they were the only ones who weren't at max power aside from Frieza himself of course. Their Prince was, that much he could tell because he could sense no spare energy but these two…

He was curious about them. He wasn't looking for high power levels here no. He was here to sow a seed and he needed to know if these two had the potential to do what he wanted. He needed to know if they were fighters. He needed people with a strong fighting spirit and those two seemed to fit the bill so far. The Prince was very arrogant and prideful, not someone who would not listen to anything over his own pride. The bald one was nothing impressive. It was those two he was interested in.

That and their true power… It seemed they had no idea how to control their energy beyond the techniques they used in battle and this was limiting their ability to use their max power. He knew their power was really not that special but estimated their true strength was some distance below the Prince's current level. Were they maybe, born with a naturally relaxed energy level? It was interesting…

If they could pull of something like this, how good would they be if they fought at maximum strength?

He was distracted by a glint in the open sky above and looked up to see a square looking thing with thrusters flying across the sky. He frowned.

 _That's a space ship but no one ever comes here on account of there being nothing to attract anyone. Only one person could possibly have interest here right now._

 _Frieza…_

* * *

 **AN: Ok so I quoted the power levels and now you should have an idea how strong the two Saiyans are. So we have Rikku out of commission for a good while and Naya to pick up the slack against an even stronger opponent if they are found... About that, Rikku is** ** _not_** **over powered by the way and neither is Naya for that matter, he was simply up against an inept opponent. Sheer power level was not enough to beat him although if the gap was large enough and the transformation more balanced he'd have lost horribly, regardless of skill. This is just so you guys know, I'm not making a couple of gods. Characters like that always bore me.**


	4. Chapter 3

**Hey, me again but you knew that. Sorry this one took a while, and I probably rushed it towards the end maybe. If so let me know and I'll do something about it. Anyway, I should probably quote some power levels here so you know who's stronger than who. Also, credit goes to Daige for Kin and Hiyori. Frankly, it was a bit difficult figuring out how to put them in but I did it also with his help (I'm assuming you're a guy) so yeah, credits.**

 **Rikku(recovered)-4500**

 **Naya-3470**

 **Kin(At full power)-3200**

 **Hiyori(At full power)-3000**

 **Their power levels while injured should not be necessary, hopefully.**

 **Disclaimer: ****I do not own Dragon Ball Z but just you watch me. I will soon. Maybe. Possibly.**

 **Chapter 3**

* * *

 **Naya**

"Owowowowow!"

Naya dug her knee into Rikku's back right behind the solar plexus, placed her hand on his shoulders and forcibly shoved his ribcage open again. The bronze skinned boy promptly fell over onto the rough brown bark of the tree branch they were on. He lay there taking his first deep breaths in a while, his bare chest heaving.

Naya had carried Rikku some distance from the battleground and then placed him up in this tree. It was to be their base while he rested. She'd picked somewhere high up just to be on the safe side. The fact that the branch they were on could easily have been a street was a solid plus and the massive leaves kept them well hidden. Of course, it meant everything had a green tinge because the light filtered through the leaves. With that in mind, Naya had cleared the leaves above them so proper sunlight and air could get in. Looking up, one could see the sun was setting.

She stood up and clapped. "Alright, turn over I want to see the back of your neck."

"No," he whined.

She ignored him and turned him over, checking his shoulders and neck to see if he was alright. She also compared the alignment of his neck with that of where his spinal cord was. She tapped him once and said, "There's nothing wrong with your neck, it was probably just turned too far when that Veridian hit you."

"Just turned too far she says," came Rikku's muffled voice. "Like something like that couldn't snap my neck and kill me."

She rolled him over roughly so he was facing upwards. "You were lucky he didn't break it."

"Anyway, you'll have to rest your arms for a bit," she continued. "Especially, the right one-"

Rikku gave a pained grin. "Your right or mine?"

"Do you _want_ me to hit you?"

"No ma'am," he said quickly.

Naya paused, irritated. Then she sighed and stood up straight. The leaves she'd ripped out lay right next to the trunk in a kind of makeshift bed that she'd put together for them. On that bed lay Rikku's cracked armor, broken scouter and ripped shirt. She pointed at it like someone telling their pet to go fetch.

"Ok, so you can go rest now or whatever you want," she said. "I'll go get supper."

Rikku slowly, got himself onto his knees and then pushed himself up with the utmost care all the while wobbling dangerously. Almost immediately, he began trembling wildly, so much that his legs seemed to shoot out from under him and he fell back down on the branch with a hard thud. He groaned, then winced a bit as he accidentally moved his neck. Right after that, he turned it through the full range of motion.

"OW!"

"Shouldn't you wait a bit before you do that?" she asked, slightly concerned. "I could carry you to the bed."

"You have no idea how wrong that sounded just now," he responded, gritting his teeth through the pain. Even though he was hurting he sounded very much amused.

Naya blanched. "You know what, you do it yourself."

She turned away, still uncomfortable about letting him move on his own. Arguing with him over things like that would achieve nothing, because he was stubborn and he would do it anyway. Plus, if he couldn't handle it he would stop. "Ok then, I'm going to get some food. You just stay put."

She looked out at the surrounding forest, already formulating a hunting schedule.

"It's going to be such a hassle hauling everything up here," she muttered, rolling one shoulder. "Ok!"

Her aura burst to life as she gathered her energy and promptly took off at speed. As she flew through the forest, she thought up which creatures to go for as of now to get a good meal, preferably the gigantic ones- no telling how hungry that annoying boy was at this point. She boosted ahead. After about thirty minutes flying Naya spied two massive brown feathered birds resting quietly in a nest the size of an arena. She zoomed in and collided with them both feet first, knocking them clean off the branch. They squawked indignantly as they recovered themselves in mid-air and glared at her. She responded with a fierce blue energy wave that blew a hole through the breast of one bird, sending it crashing to the grassy forest floor. The other one made a move to fly away but she appeared in front of it and shot both eyes with two energy blasts. Flying wildly, it crashed into a tree trunk and fell to the ground.

Naya ripped a vine off a nearby branch and flew down to them, blowing a hole through the head of the unconscious one with another, more casual energy wave. As she began the arduous process of tying them up she wondered why Rikku had been so defensive during the fight with the Veridian. He was a lot better than that. He was an almost entirely offensive fighter and yet back there he'd been playing defense almost the whole time.

She sighed as she tied a knot. When would he ever get serious? Did she have to go and die or something to make him fight properly? Definitely, the opponent was strong and some sort of strategy was in order but that was ridiculous. Why was he like that? She'd seen him put up more of a fight against Vegeta, who was way stronger than that local. He had no idea how much that irritated her, this lack of fighting spirit, especially when it gave him unnecessary wounds. But she knew that, if and when it became necessary, he would come through. He tended to do that when things were really important. Not just that, but if she was being honest with herself, she knew why and that was why she wasn't giving him any grief about it. Of course, that didn't mean she had to like it.

Finished with trussing up the birds, she attached another vine to her makeshift harness and stood up. As she began to lift off with them, she was distracted by a loud whistling sound.

 _What in the hell?_

She looked around for the source, scanning the forest around her. There was nothing. But she was sure she heard something, the sound of something flying overhead. And then she looked up to see a very familiar silhouette moving across the thick canopy above. She couldn't contain herself! This was easily the best luck ever and if her scouters readings were correct, these guys were going to be easy pickings.

She smiled.

 _There… is our way out!_

 _Veridia, A Giant River_

Grass waved as a large grey square, with glowing blue thrusters underneath it began to land. On what was presumably the front side was a clear glass window showing the interior while on the opposite side were more thrusters. It was very unimpressive as space craft go. As it got closer to the ground, three landing pads extended from under it, compressing slightly as the space craft put its weight on them.

A hidden door in the side opened up to reveal a silver haired boy, standing in it. He took a breath, appreciating the view he was offered. They were in front of a massive river, easily wide enough to be an ocean. The only reason he knew it was a river at all was that he saw it on the way down. The water was a lovely shade of blue, the air was fresh, the grass was green and, upon his stepping on it, soft.

He wandered around for a bit before coming to a stop at the water's edge. The boy was quite muscular though not big at all, with healthy fair skin, most of which was hidden beneath a light blue gi that was tied off with a belt the same shade of blue, and a white short sleeved shirt underneath that gi. He had on white trousers and blue boots the same shade as his gi. On his well-toned arms you could see blue wrist bands.

In the water, his feminine face rippled with the movements of the river. He really did look like a girl, with his small mouth, pug nose and slightly large black eyes. His silver hair was glossy and hung in over his forehead. It was long too and the back end stretched to his waist in a long shiny curtain, adding to his feminine look. That and the long black eyelashes erased any possibility of his face being recognized as that of a male. Kin Dura sighed when he saw his reflection in the water. He had had his fair share of comments on his face in his fourteen years of life.

"Is it safe out there?" a voice came from the door he had just left.

He turned back to look at the space ship and said, "Yeah. You can come out."

A girl stepped out of the doorway, dressed in a black tied off with a thin green belt. She wore no shirt underneath it, leaving her chest and arms bare which exposed a black necklace with a green magatama as a pendant. On her wrists were green wristbands. Her trousers were black, and she wore white socks with black boat shape shoes.

The girl herself was small and slender but with good muscle tone underneath her fair skin. Her black hair was straight and fell onto her small shoulders, hiding them from sight. The rest of it covered her head and then fell over her forehead in a series of bangs. She had large, soft black eyes ringed by long eyelashes that looked slightly green, a small cute little nose and an equally small mouth. She tended not to talk much.

Seeing her, Kin felt a wave of focus come over him. As his younger sister, Hiyori was his rock, his foundation. Ever since their parents died she has been the one holding things together while all he seemed to be good for was fighting. Sometimes, he felt so useless in front of her… but now was not the time. There were supposed to be two members of the Frieza Force here on a mission right now. Everywhere else, they'd been hanging about in massive armies and those few who did work alone exuded so much energy it was stupid to even consider taking them down. These two were supposed to be moderately strong, which meant this was their chance to find out who exactly this Lord Frieza was and where he could be found.

Kin turned in the direction of the large clearing they had flown past on the way here. That massive area had been severely worked over by someone and he was guessing that only Frieza's men would engage quite so recklessly. He gestured to Hiyori and took to the air, knowing instinctively that she would do the same. As they both traveled to the clearing, Kin could barely calm himself.

Right now, finally… it was time, to show that they would fight back with everything they had.

 _Shadow Grotto, Kaloa Tree_

Sanza came to a stop in front of the massive Kaloa tree, and looked around the grotto with some amount of pleasure. Then he frowned when he remembered why he was here. His son had rushed off to defeat the enemy without listening to the rest of his statement. Ordinarily, that would be a bad thing but as there is god of death there must also be a god of life. Sanza knew that the threat would not be so easy to defeat and sent his son as a probe. It was probably because he of what he was about to do that his son had rushed off without much thought for the consequences of his actions, whether or not he was one of the only two warriors left capable of fighting. Honestly, this kind of thing inspired carelessness of the highest grade.

The Kaloa tree was easily the biggest on the planet and was the only tree with luminous leaves. Those glowing leaves filled the land with energy and were what kept Veridia so fertile, and this very same tree absorbed the life energy of the things that died. Created by the Erven and his mistress, the goddess of life the legends said and Sanza for one believed strongly in those legends. It was what led him to master control over the tree but something of this scale would take a very long time. A balance between death and life to create an eternal existence… that was what the Kaloa tree was all about. With proper mastery over one's own energy, the tree could also be influenced if the communicator attained the proper synergy.

Sanza stepped right up to the massive trunk of the Kaloa tree and sat cross legged before it. He rested his spear on his lap and placed his hands on top of it, then closed his eyes and began to regulate his energy. He felt for the consciousness of the tree, and then used that to find its energy. As always, the flow was massive and hard to follow. It was all too easy to get caught up in the torrent but Sanza had trained well and resisted the flow, instead directing it with his own energy.

In short, he wanted the tree to give and not take. He had sensed the disappearance of his son's energy and knew what had happened. He could not bring back everybody, especially if they were not on solid ground, not to mention the amount of time required.

Needless to say, he would be here a while.

 _Tree branch, Makeshift base, a month later_

I flexed the fingers of my right hand, pleased when they didn't quiver or twitch unexpectedly. After a month, my body was finally moving the way I wanted it to and that made me extremely happy. It had been so annoying trying to do something and having my damaged limbs spasm or flop completely. Naya had been a boon right then, she did everything for me when I couldn't. Of course not everything exactly, I still bathed myself and dressed myself difficult as it was. There were simply some things one should do alone. How I did so shall remain my secret.

In my other hand was my blue shirt, ripped almost beyond use. I had also decided not to use my armour, mainly because it was completely broken now. The cracks the Veridian made ran a lot deeper than I had previously thought and the suit could no longer hold itself together. Damn thing was too restrictive anyway. Right now, I had a choice between a ripped nearly useless shirt and my bare chest. I figured I'd just go with the latter for now.

I was sitting on the very edge of our little tree branch swinging my feet aimlessly. I found myself remembering, Naya taking time to rehab me. It was a tedious month where I easily got frustrated with how physically lame my injuries made me. If it weren't for her, just as when we first met, I would be nowhere or probably crippled in some permanent way. The damage ran deeper than I had foreseen, the bruises on my chest and arms had faded but the wounds were mostly in my muscle. Constantly blocking the Veridians attacks and that body slam had beat them out of shape and made it difficult to move them correctly. And then there were the closed ribs… That was temporary and easily fixed but breathing had been so hard.

After I got far along enough, Naya took to sparring with me to get me back up to fighting condition. As always, she came through for me. I was going to have to pay her back in some way for this. This wasn't the first time she'd done so much for me… God I was so stupid! I punched the branch with my free hand, sending splinters flying, and leaving a fist shaped dent in it. I was surprised when I saw the indent smoking, the vapour wafting up into the air and fading away… I'd gotten stronger it seemed. I briefly considered checking my power level on the scouter back on our makeshift bed and dismissed the idea. Darn thing was broken anyway, smashed during my fight with the green furred Veridian. I remembered Vegeta mentioning something like this, something about Saiyans getting stronger every time they get severely injured to the point of near death. I was thanking my lucky stars that I was able to recover in just a month; I had a very strong constitution even for a Saiyan.

 _But does crippled qualify?_ I wondered, and then shrugged it off mentally. _Whatever, you take what you get and you don't complain._

"Hey," Naya said, dropping down next to me with a smile. "You look preoccupied, anything I can help with?"

Her brown eyes shone good-naturedly.

I stopped looking at them. "No, not this time, this is for me to deal with. I've recovered nicely; you've done your part."

She stopped smiling, her eyes softening. I had no idea what she was thinking at that point, it could have been any number of things from several different times since we met.

Almost instantly, the smile came right back. "Ok then. We'll have to get going and finish the mission anyway."

She stood up and I found myself staring up at her. _Where did this come from all of a sudden?_

She stared at me expectantly. "Well? You had yesterday to rest up didn't you? There's no more reason to delay."

"Oh, right," I said hastily, standing up quickly. I threw the shirt aside and dusted the seat of my trousers off, removing splinters. She was right, there _was_ no reason to delay. We needed to set a game plan and then proceed with the mission.

"You said you saw an attack pod that time a month ago, right?" I asked her.

She nodded. "Uh-huh, so it's safe to assume there's more. Frieza wouldn't send the best to get _us_ meaning it's someone about our level or slightly higher but seeing as there's two of us, it's also safe to assume there's more than one of them. Relying on my scouter readings, they're slightly weaker than us. Perhaps, they chose different landing points to track us down faster."

I thought about this for a moment, considering our position in the Frieza Force in terms of strength. There was no flaw in her logic except that percentage allowed to chance that anything could happen and that Frieza's ideal strategy could be a lot different from what she thought. I mean, people about our level in the Frieza Force weren't very common.

"Ok, so we're screwing the mission and going after the pods then," I finally said.

Naya floated off the branch and turned back. "Sure, but the next battle is still mine regardless of the enemy. You're on break for a while, think of it as personnel resource management."

I smiled and followed her into the air. That cheeky little girl… but well I did say I needed her at full power. There was that chief out there and who knows how many other threats we would have to wade through. With Naya's destructive power, we'd be able to blow through all the small fry if any and do a tonne of damage to any enemy that got in the way. Worst case scenario, I back her up. It was good enough, considering we didn't know how much had changed in a month.

It was time to get moving. We flew off in the direction she saw the attack pod landing, west or so it was. As we travelled, I found myself thinking about Vegeta once again. Where was he now? What was he doing? I hadn't thought about him in ages. I mean, Naya and I may tease him a lot but he was kind of a big brother at this point. Remembering his strength and how he used to show it off back when we were new brought a smile to my lips. He used to bully Raditz a lot back then too, constantly making fun of him. Nappa had been our teacher those times, and he raised with us much care as he did his Saibamen and man did he love those Saibamen. Whenever he showed us new tricks and combat strategies, Vegeta would scoff and call it all farce saying that the only thing that mattered was ability. Then he'd challenge us and, being a natural elite, pound us into the ground with minimal effort. I missed the time when things were like that, minus the beatings of course. We used to have so much fun, then Vegeta kind of closed himself off after a while. Raditz died on a mission no one was willing to tell us about as yet and Nappa was suddenly too busy to spar with us anymore. It quickly got boring in the Frieza Force but Naya and I had nowhere else to go, assuming you could even leave the force. That and, dysfunctional as we were, Vegeta and the others were our family. There were no other Saiyans and even if there were, none had ever done anything remotely close to what Vegeta and Napa had done for us. They were irreplaceable in my eyes. Admittedly, I was suspicious of Vegeta when we got this mission but I had no real idea what he was doing. I just knew he was hiding something and that was it.

"I see it," Naya announced.

Once I was finally paying attention, I did notice a giant crater dwarfed by the massive surrounding trees with an attack pod in it. The door on the attack pod was closed and seemed just as weathered as the shell, indicating the owner hadn't reopened it in a while, possibly, the whole a month I was crippled. Which meant they were probably on a do or die mission, whether the mission was to annihilate us or check on us or something else entirely I didn't know but one thing was clear: It was important to someone who had a lot of pull in the Frieza Force. We landed on the edge of the crater, and I stepped forward.

"I'll check if it's online," I said, sliding down the side.

"And I'll keep guard here," Naya replied.

"Not like you have much of a choice you know," I called back as I stepped up to the pod.

She snorted and ignored me.

I looked over the pod, stepping around it carefully. The exterior seemed dirty, but that was it; just dirt. It looked very much in good condition. I knocked the side, and listened to the echo; no structure weaknesses either. This pod was good to go.

I circled back in front and placed a palm against the door. The thing did not move. I swore.

"What?" Naya asked.

"This is one of the newer ones," I explained, stepping back. "Each time you go on a mission they register it with your DNA so only you can open it, then when you get back they wipe it for someone else."

She swore.

"Whoa there with the swearing, when you do it after I do it, it makes it look excessive."

She sighed. "Let's just get a move on."

"It's not too big an issue," I said, taking to the air. "If we find these guys and slice up the relevant body parts we can still get out of here. It just means we have to take care not to destroy them utterly."

"Easy for you to say," she said with a frown, folding her arms and joining me in the air.

"I could do it for you," I offered.

"No, I said you're on break," she responded. "I'll handle it myself."

I gave a defeated smirk. "Well, I did offer."

She smiled at me. "Well, you know me. Once I choose to do something I go through with it, all things being equal."

"Indeed, I do," I said with a shrug. "I know you're not unreasonable, as long as you can take care of yourself I'm fine with whatever choice you make."

Naya took a deep breath, unfolding her arms as she did so. "Just have to be a little gentler, not that hard."

I found myself smiling slyly. "Right."

She turned to glare at me. "You're not helping."

"I know."

"I hate you."

"I know that too."

She snorted, looked away and said, "I will not let you goad me again, c'mon let's go."

I noted the amusement in her voice and allowed myself an inward smile. _Mission Accomplished._

A loud boom rocked the trees around us and a massive bright glow shone between the trunks of the trees around the crater. Naya's scouter beeped as it desperately tried to measure the energy and then blew up in her face when it got too high for it. We both whirled to face the direction in which the noise came from, tense and ready to counter any surprise attack. Naya wiped the soot off her left eye with one arm, unhurt by the scouter explosion.

After several seconds, nothing came at us and we both relaxed just a little.

"I wonder what that was," I said. "It looked immensely powerful. That blast was incredible."

"I'm wondering if it has anything to do with the Chief," Naya said. "Or the soldiers sent here, dammit without my scouter I got nothing."

"I think we may have to check it out," I pointed out. "Unfortunately, we're pretty out of the loop right now."

"I know," Naya responded, powering up. "Let's go!"

She zoomed away, leaving a blue trail of energy. I quickly did the same and burst after her. What was the source of that explosion of energy? Who was possibly that powerful here right now? I had a feeling that the answers to those questions were not anything I could possibly conceive. I'd only ever seen one person exhibit such strength…

…Frieza.

 _Decimated Forest_

Kin stared in horror, at the massive damage before him. Merely by unleashing his strength the opponent had leveled a section of forest miles wide, all just to kill him and his sister. Had he not flown up at the speed he did and grabbed Hiyori, he and his sister would have been just like the scenery… wasted. What kind of monstrous, _unnecessary_ strength was this?! And he could sense energy, so he was well aware of the fact that that wasn't even the half of it, or even the one tenth. This guy… no this _thing_ had a tonne more where that came from.

Where there were once giant trees there was nothing but barren wasteland and crumbling rock. Ash floated on the breeze that was now free to pass where it was once blocked by the massive trunks and drape like leaves. In the middle of the mess, a single humanoid silhouette stood casually, cloak billowing in the wind. Next to him, Hiyori squinted in an effort to catch a glimpse. So far, they had no visual on their attacker so fast had he moved. The assailant pointed his index finger in their general direction.

Kin's eyes widened in fear. "Hiyori, run!"

He grabbed his sister and took off with such force he kicked up pieces of the ground, blazing through the air in a white flaming aura. He put on a burst of energy and increased his speed, but he was too late. A hail storm of energy blasts rained down around him as he flew, trying his very best to get away. He dodged them all, brushing dangerously close to several of them and trying to keep his sister out of the line of fire. It was like flying in a heat wave. The heat and force behind each ball was evident in the explosions they made on collision with the scant surroundings. He got caught in several explosions whenever he got too close to an impact zone but he blazed through the pain, keeping his mind focused on one goal : Run away. Inevitably, he started to wear down as the high speed attack was too much and in what felt like several minutes, but was really only a few seconds, Kin was blasted to the ground along with his sister. Their bodies steamed dangerously and their eyes were whited out.

Above, the sky began to darken as thunderheads began to form. The figure walked with the impeding darkness, cloak billowing in the rapidly growing wind. It was time to deal with the trash, no one could interfere with the test. The two Saiyans were not to be touched by anyone for any reason. It stood over the bodies and lifted a hand. A bright yellow ball of energy formed in its palm, its brightness indicating the concentration of power in the innocent looking thing. These two would die here.

The sound of two people in flight made the figure pause.

 _If I do this now, they'll get caught up in it too._

It shook its head. _Well, when I finally test them I can just kill these two off later. I want no distractions._

The figure hidden in ash let the energy fade away and turned to the source of the noise in a lazy manner. It was time to go and continue watching from the shadows. The figure blurred… and was gone.

 ** _Rikku_**

I landed somewhere in the middle of a rocky wasteland and whistled in surprise. This was worrying. For miles there was nothing but rock and dirt mixed with ash and dust, all of which swirled together in a gritty cocktail on the wind. Visibility was horrible, and there were absolutely no trees at all. For a planet as rich as this one in fertile plant life, that was a first. No, this was done by somebody or something and from the looks of it, they were powerful. At the very least, Frieza level. And where were our scouters right when we needed them?! Oh right, they were broken! It was enough to make me swear again if not for the bad weather.

Somewhere behind me I heard Naya land too. This would have been so amazing if it weren't so terrifying… was it the Chief? Or was it something else on this planet? Maybe we really were sent here to be killed, possibly by whoever or whatever did this. I lifted one hand to shield my face, frowning at the grim thought and squinting my eyes against the particle infested wind. I began to walk through the mess, taking time to examine the area. Most of the damage seemed rough and uneven, possibly caused by explosive force which would explain why we felt it and saw it from so far away. I reached a point where the wasteland seemed to narrow down a lot more, the line looked only to be about sixty feet wide as compared to the five mile wide circle we'd flown across to reach this point.

Behind me, I noticed Naya crouched some distance away picking at a rock and eyeing it with some amount of distress when it crumbled all too easily. I looked back at the end of my little passage to see two bodies lying entangled in each other. What was I saying, the trough was like a dried up river path. Both bodies were releasing disturbing amounts of smoke and upon inspection both were barely alive.

"Naya!" I called out over the wind. "I've found two dead guys here."

She stopped examining her rock and flew over to me. She paused immediately, "Whoa, whoa, whoa whoa, whoa!"

"I know," I said. "They're barely alive."

She gave me an expressionless look. "You said they were dead."

I shrugged. "Might as well be."

"Well, they look foreign to this planet unless we missed something when we started killing the natives," Naya said thoughtfully, turning back to the bodies. "They most likely have a spaceship that they came here with. If we nurse them back to health, perhaps we can hitch a ride with them."

"Or we could search them for any necessary information to pilot their spaceship such as passwords and whatnot and leave them here to die," I offered. "We don't have any medical supplies you know."

Naya pointed at the bodies. "Are you seeing any pockets, 'cause I'm not."

I sighed. "I just don't want the extra weight. If they slow us down I'm totally killing them."

"Sure," Naya replied and picked up one of them one handed, then slung the person over her shoulder.

I picked up one too and did the same. "Alright, let's go."

With that we rose up and headed back to base.

 _Veridia, Destroyed Clearing_

Shadah sat up with a gasp, eyes roving over the area looking for the armored boy. He blinked repeatedly, confused as to why the boy wasn't there and why the clearing was so messed up. He forced himself easily to his feet, his body fresh and unhurt. His fur however, was a patchwork of clean green fur and dirty dark green fur. He needed a bath. Looking around, it was morning and gentle sunlight shone down on the clearing. It was very peaceful.

 _Impaled! The energy blew a hole in his chest and continued to blaze right through him. Spitting up blood and falling the instant the beam was cut off! Pain! Darkness! But in the middle of that darkness, the stranger in the cracked armor…_

That was right! He had died at the hands of that boy, refusing to give up where the rest of his people were hidden. He'd even used his second form and he still died against the enemy. Shadah looked at his dirty hands and clenched his fists in anger, the memory of losing so horribly was strong in his mind. He had to get revenge not just for his people but for himself, for his own peace of mind.

"Ah, Shadah," a voice called out.

Shadah looked to his left to see a small maroon furred Veridian, a child clearly, smiling at him with sharp teeth and glowing eyes. The child was sitting on the tree the armored boy had brought down in a very lazy manner. Shadah blinked in confusion.

 _Why's he looking at me all creepy-like?_

On seeing his clueless look, the child burst into laughter and said, "Everyone's heading for the Chief now, in the Shadow Grotto. I was sent to get you by the Chief himself."

"So father has a plan now?" Shadah asked.

"I think so," the child said, waving a hand nonchalantly. "To be honest, I'm only here now because I was told I would get meat if I came to get you. Everyone else was too scared to come this way, the other kids I mean."

Shadah nodded. "Let's go then."

The child leaped into the surrounding forest and Shadah followed after him. They leaped and jumped through the treetops with the practiced ease of all Veridians, covering the massive distance easily. As they traveled Shadah, thought once again about the two strangers, wondering how exactly one so weak was able to crush him who was much stronger. He had his techniques, his power but all of it wasn't enough. How did he lose? Was it luck? No, Shadah realized, it was the fact that his opponent was always one step ahead of him. The boy knew what he was doing and he knew how to handle each and every move Shadah was capable of. When he saw Shadah's true strength he simply made Shadah waste it to the point where Shadah was easy pickings. In earnest, the boy fought him very well.

They stopped some hours into the trip to pick up some giant fruits to eat. These fruits were Gourlug, ridiculously large round yellow lumps of juicy tangy goodness. He shared one with the child and they were on their way again, Shadah once again enveloped in his thoughts. If he was going to beat that guy, he needed to think and plan very intricately how he was going to deal with his techniques. That was how the boy beat him and so now that was how _he_ would beat the _boy._

Next to him, the child began singing, "Meat, meat, meat is the best. I love meat and so do you…"

Shadah found himself smiling as they sailed through the treetops together. Little children had few worries, but he was the son of the chief and the second strongest on this planet, he had too much weight on his shoulders to have fun like them, especially since everyone saw him as average, nothing special as compared to his father.

By evening, they reached the Shadow Grotto. The place was crowded with several Veridians, old and young, all bathed in the light from the Kaloa Tree's luminous leaves. The crowd whispered as he and the boy landed in their midst. Things like "Ah, it's Shadah", "Hmmm, he failed us", "Why is he so much weaker than his father?"

Shadah hung his head in shame. If they knew the kind of strength gap he'd had over the enemy, the insults would be overwhelming. He found himself praying that his father wanted private council just so no one else got to hear what he had to say about his battle. The crowd made a path for him, that extended farther ahead to the base of the tree where his father sat cross legged, bathing in the light of the Kaloa trees leaves. Shadah made his way towards his father walking with care so as not to trip on any extended feet.

When he got to the red furred chief, the path closed up again. All conversations had ceased so they could listen to what the Chief and Shadah would say to each other.

Shadah grimaced. _So no private council then…_

"Did you see what it was that was destroying our villages?" Sanza asked his son, eyes closed in meditation.

The chief looked tired and hungry, all signs of how long he had sat here with the tree.

"How many did you bring back?" Shadah blurted out.

His father bared his teeth in irritation. "That is not what I asked you boy!"

Shadah knew that his father's patience was not to be tested, especially when most of it had been spent on another task. The thing to do was to simply answer the questions and follow the orders, asking him that question now of all times had been stupid, mostly because the outcome would not change, the threat would not be dealt with and his father clearly did not have the time to deal with pointless questions. It was the dumb things like this that he did that made the villagers hate him. He could hear the whispers, "That inconsiderate boy. Doesn't he know his father is at his limit?"

And it was true, Sanza looked like he was going to keel over any second.

Shadah bowed, trying to ignore the pain he felt. "Sorry father. They were two people clad in armor with furry tails. They didn't have any fur except on their heads and their tails. They were good enough to take me in my first form but…"

Shadah paused, unable to say it.

Sanza raised an eyebrow. "But?"

"But when I transformed, I was many times stronger than they were," Shadah continued. He was struggling to bring himself to say it but he did. Now was not the time for this.

"Then why did you die?" Sanza asked.

"He was simply a better fighter than I was," Shadah admitted. "He seemed to know the answer to everything I came up with, every trick, every attack. I think only you can handle him."

Sanza frowned once again. "I'm in no condition to fight on that kind of level as I am now."

He paused. "Perhaps, if I transform it should make it easier on me to fight. With that kind of advantage I'd be able to do it, I think."

Everyone was listening to the Chief's quiet musings.

Sanza uncrossed his legs and stood up. "Alright, we'll all go. All warriors prepare your selves. We leave the day after tomorrow. I need to rest and recover just a bit. Gatherers, bring us food!"

Everyone cheered and scattered to do their various jobs. They would be eliminating the enemy once and for all. As for finding them, that would be no issue, after all they owned this planet.

 ** _Unknown_**

Standing high up in the shadows deep in the branches of the Kaloa tree, a place where the light of the leaves failed to penetrate, a dark hollow, he stood listening with some amount of worry. He was unsure the Saiyans could stand up to something of this scale, especially when they barely beat the green one alone. Maybe now was the time to make his move and test them, to see if they were worthy. Then he could transport them back to Frieza on that planet he was on right now, the one where he was searching for the dragon balls or something. Time was of the essence, as it was he felt they would be missing something important if they delayed anymore, something essential to their growth as warriors.

Yes, perhaps now was the time to leave the shadows…

 _Tree Branch, Makeshift base, the next morning_

Once again, I was sitting on the edge of the branch swinging my feet aimlessly while the morning light shone in from the whole in the leaves above us. Naya was next to the leaf bed tending to the newcomers. They'd made an impressive recovery, as thank fully there was no trauma or anything it was mostly just energy burns. Whoever attacked them was holding back and that was really the only reason they were still alive. They were still unconscious however but we didn't have time to waste on waiting for them to wake up. We'd eventually decided that if they didn't wake up by afternoon we would just leave them here and take our chances with looking for the other soldiers of Frieza.

As I was contemplating the best way to search for the soldiers if it became necessary, it came to my notice that one of the people we'd rescued was right behind me. I froze.

"I see you're very observant even though you don't seem to know how to sense energy," the person said.

I remained frozen, keeping my voice calm and even. "There's just something very disturbing to me when the air stops flowing behind my back and I hear breathing behind me. I can tell you're standing, slightly off to the side because you're supporting yourself. I can roughly pinpoint where your head is. I don't want to knock you out so could you back off?"

"Can you tell that I also have a hand close to _your_ head?" came the reply. "I could blow your head off before you made a move."

I didn't bother to argue because I could feel it, there were just some things you _knew_ and I knew I could handle this guy before he ever got his chance. So I sighed instead.

"Rikku don't knock him out," Naya's voice rang out.

I felt my attacker turn and instantly shot to my feet and kicked him in the back of both knees. The second he hit the branch I had him in a choke hold. Now that I was turned around, I could see Naya dangling the other one by the ankle with one arm.

"She tried to choke me out," Naya explained.

Now that they weren't smoking quite so profusely I could finally see their features clearly. The one I currently had at my mercy had silver hair, he was dressed in a blue loose looking shirt, another shirt white this time, white baggy trousers, and blue boots. His hair was silver. He looked pretty strong too, judging by the muscle tone. Were he not so injured he might have been able to handle me, maybe. Probably.

Naya was holding up a girl dressed in a black kind of loose shirt, tied off with a green band at the middle by one leg. It seemed to be a one piece thing unlike the boy's which came in separate pieces. She wore some flat soled shoes with white socks. Her hair was shorter than the boys and was black. Both of them were very obviously younger than us, the height and the looks were a dead giveaway.

"Ok smiley," I began, bending down to closer to his ear. "What's your name?"

"Kin," he responded. "Kin Dura."

"Are you lying?" I asked with a dangerous smile.

"No reason to," he responded. "We have no one to protect from you seeing as you already took them away."

I looked at Naya, slightly confused. _Did we kill anyone related to these two somewhere?_

Naya looked as lost as I was. The girl in her left hand was very silent, eyes watching for a chance. Possibly, she'd seen how much stronger Naya was than her and was unwilling to make any strange moves. Even with so many holes in her defense, Naya was dangerous and this girl recognized that.

"Have we met before?" I asked him.

"No," he growled. "But your army, your comrades, your _Frieza Force_ did the job. In other words, your Lord Frieza took my family and I plan to kill him too."

"Oh so you want to kill Frieza," I said, making sure to keep my grip firmly around his neck, just enough so he knew I could tighten it at any time. To be honest, that wasn't very surprising.

Naya also looked unsurprised by this revelation and let the girl she was holding drop. Immediately, the girl caught herself with her hands and sprang away from Naya coming up with her guard up. The boy I was holding also stomped on my right foot and leaped away. Or at least he tried to, what happened was I moved my foot and let him go. He stood right next to his partner, both of them in stances that were foreign to me however I didn't pay much attention to that.

"If it's Frieza you want, you can help us out then," I offered, casually spreading my arms in a noncommittal way.

They both looked _very_ confused. "Huh?"

"You don't seem very respectful of your leader," Kin said, tensing up. "Or loyal for that matter."

"Except when we're in the presence of him or his generals," Naya said. "Very few soldiers actually like him, you know? It's mostly join the strong or be crushed for most. The rest are actually pretty dangerous guys who get off on making people weaker than they are suffer."

"Oh and you guys happen to be the good Samaritans who fall into neither group?" Kin retorted, shifting his stance a little.

I sighed. "I'm not a good Samaritan, dumbass. What I'm saying is you help us get back and you get to see Frieza, we won't stop you or snitch you, mostly because I can't be bothered but hey."

Kin Dura blinked. "What? That's literally a typical 'I will look the other way if it's you gig'"

"Listen idiot," Naya interrupted, tapping the ground with the tips of her toes. "What we mean is we really don't care what you want to do with Frieza, mainly because we have other interests yeah? So are you going to help or not?"

I pointed at them lazily. "Oh, and you could you stop with the stances? We're more than capable of beating you senseless and could have done so ages ago."

Kin and his partner both started and cautiously stood up straight, then he paused to think about what we were saying eyeing us the entire time. He said we were the good Samaritans that fell into neither group. Ha! We did fall into neither group but we had our own reasons for being in the Frieza Force: We were there because the last Saiyans were there. We were there because Vegeta was there and he was our Prince, our big bro. That's all there was to it. We had no one and nothing except for him and Nappa. If Vegeta were to go against Frieza, as long as the reason was plausible, we would back him up. We were loyal to Vegeta, _not_ Frieza.

"How do you have interests outside of your very own leader?" Kin demanded. "You honestly expect me to believe that?"

I closed my eyes in exasperation. "Well, you're not dead yet are you?"

I heard his breath catch.

"If, as you say, your family was taken from you by the Frieza Force it was most likely a purge to sell your planet," I said. "As to whether it failed or succeeded does not matter because what it means is that by the Frieza Force's reckoning you should be dead. If we were really interested in carrying out Frieza's will, the moment you admitted that we should have killed you two rather than ask you for help."

I opened my eyes to look calmly at his stunned face, his black eyes wide with surprise. Clearly, he hadn't thought of it that way.

"M-m-m-m-m-m, maybe you had some kind of plan in place to stop us from killing Frieza while we helped you," he stammered, sweating a bit.

"I admit that is a viable thought," Naya said, squatting to rest on her heels. "But you said something about sensing energy which means that you can tell how much energy we give off compared to you guys. Take a look then and tell me…"

She looked at them, her brown eyes suddenly very cold. "Do we need any such thing?"

Kin looked down, unable to meet her gaze. "No."

Her eyes immediately reverted to their normal look. She stood up straight and flicked her feet a few times.

"Good, so could you help us out?" she asked.

"I suppose it depends on what you need help with," Kin said.

"Oh, it's simple we just need a ride back to Outpost 244," Naya said. "Our pods are useless right now."

I shifted my weight from foot to foot, waiting for a response.

Kin paused and looked at his partner, who nodded.

"I suppose we could do that for you so long as nothing comes of it," he said.

"Don't worry," I said. "Anyone who tries to kill you will be destroyed instantly by Naya and me."

"That's not very encouraging."

"Right, let's get a move on then," I said, rolling my shoulders and taking a deep breath.

Kin looked surprised. "What? Now?"

"Why not?" Naya cut in. "You aren't so hurt you can't fly a ship are you? Plus, you have us for any heavy lifting. Not only that, there are no medical supplies here of any use if your wounds worsen. Either way, we would have had to go once you woke up."

He looked taken aback for several seconds, surprised by the ease and speed with which we were asking them to move .Kin frowned and looked at his partner who nodded.

They extended their hands to us.

"Fine, a proper introduction then," Kin said. "I'm Kin Dura and this is my sister, Hiyori Reza. It's nice to meet you."

 _What is he five? We already know his name, formalities are useless here._

Naya and I both walked over and shook their hands. "Naya Kirisame and Rikku Akazaru, nice to meet you too."

"Can't believe you said that last part," I muttered, placing my hands in my pockets.

"It's good to relate to people the way they relate to you," Naya responded.

She turned back to them. "So I'm guessing you know how to use energy from your failed assault just now, so can you guys fly?"

Both of them looked embarrassed about Naya's straightforward speech but they bore it well.

"Yes, we can," Kin answered, cheeks slightly pink. His sister looked no better.

"Alright then, let's go," Naya said, floating up.

We all joined her in the air and faced each other in a big circle. Kin who looked nervous, to Hiyori who looked wary and Naya who looked optimistic. Me? I was just glad after all, it had been so long and I was sick of this place.

Finally, we were leaving this dump.

* * *

 **AN: Oooooh, looks like leaving Veridia might not be as easy as it looks huh? Anyway, please review. As usual, let me know if there are any problems and please, NO GUEST REVIEWS cause I can't respond. I'm making it a point to answer every review so please do so. Imma drop it here, until the next one.**


	5. Chapter 4

**Sorry this one took so long, for a while I was kind of stuck on what I wanted to do with this chapter I mean... there were so many possibilities-and there still are- and so many directions things could take I was kind of lost. I'm also in the middle of exam right now so I can't really update as fast as I would like. But enough excuses, here's chapter 4.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Ball Z.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

Kin led the way to their ship while the rest of us followed behind. Being injured as he was, his flight speed was rather slow and Hiyori wasn't much better for much the same reason. As a result, a journey that could have been completed in mere minutes looked like it was going to take an hour's flight. Multiple times I considered beating the information we needed out of them and just flying away but it would be too much hassle that way, plus if I screwed up they would be dead and we would be back to square one which was hunting for the other soldiers.

So I kept silent while we flew through the massive trunks of Veridia's gigantic trees, doing nothing but pass the time thoughtlessly flying behind Kin. Naya was right behind Kin to make sure anything that leaped out couldn't hurt him while I stayed at the back next to Hiyori. Like me, she'd been silent for most of this journey. Naya, on the other hand, was busy trying to learn more about Kin and Hiyori as a way to establish good relations and to better understand the best ways to protect them as necessary. Naturally, that means she and Kin were locked in conversation. Being a Saiyan, my senses were very good and I could hear every word being said. Kin wasn't exactly forthcoming with people he considered strangers but he did divulge that he and his sister were fourteen. So far they were discussing likes and dislikes.

I turned around and began flying backwards with my hands behind my head. This was such a pain… I felt eyes on me and turned to see Hiyori looking at me.

I blinked. "What?"

She looked back to the front and ignored the question.

I didn't like things like that. "What were you looking at me for?"

That kind of thing really got on my nerves, when someone looked at you and then ignored you. If you're going to ignore me then keep your eyes to yourself. I glared at her, not letting up. I saw a drop of sweat break out on her forehead and I knew she knew I was still waiting for an answer.

"Explain before I lose my temper," I said.

Hiyori seemed unable to handle the stress and said, "You guys are Saiyans, right? You have the tail and everything."

"So?"

"I was… wondering why… other Saiyans… were working for Frieza."

I paused for a minute, taken by surprise. Her saying other Saiyans meant she knew Saiyans aside from us! I wasn't the type to jump to optimistic conclusions though so I simply said, still with the glare, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Hiyori seemed unsure what to say. Finally, she decided on something.

"Well, he- he blew up your planet right?"

I shot her down instantly. "That's not unique in the Frieza Force and if you researched enough to learn about our presence on this planet then you know this."

Hiyori was about to open her mouth when I said, "Don't bother. There's no way you would be here on dumb luck with a working ship looking for a way to take down Frieza. In case you haven't noticed, it's not exactly populated with anything worth something to Frieza that you would know about without research."

"So, stop beating around the bush, stop lying to me…" I said. "Why were you staring at me?"

Hiyori looked very, very reluctant to say anything but she'd gotten on my nerves and I wasn't going to let her go. Not only that, she knew other Saiyans or had heard of other Saiyans so I wasn't in any mood to put up with lies or indirect answers.

"Kin and I are Saiyans too," she said finally. "That's why I was staring at you. I've never seen any other Saiyan apart from Kin and I was…"

She trailed off and looked at the quickly passing grassy ground far below, unable to finish her sentence.

"Hooo, so Rikku fascinates you, is that it?"

I turned around to fly properly and saw Naya had drifted back with Kin to join us. Now we were all flying side by side.

I gave her a blank look. "Oi you, don't make up silly things."

Hiyori turned red and looked away. "As wrong as that sounds that may be the best way to put it."

" _And why the hell are you agreeing?"_

Naya ignored my outburst and looked at Kin who was blushing slightly.

"Is that why you were staring at me?" she asked.

Kin nodded nervously, unable to meet her eyes.

Naya looked thoughtful and looked herself over. "I was pretty sure it was the cleavage there…"

Kin choked in mid-air and veered so far of course he almost smacked into a tree. I zoomed behind him with a Genpou and caught him with one arm. He lay there limply as I flew back to join the others who had paused in mid-air to wait for us.

"Thank you," he managed, still trying to recover.

"Hmm," I grunted.

Naya held her hands to her face. "Ooh, I think maybe if I came clean he'd recover faster."

Kin choked again.

 _"_ _That's exactly the problem!"_

Naya just laughed and rubbed her nose in satisfaction. Next to her, Hiyori looked extremely embarrassed. I for one was kind of used to this by this point, after all she'd been doing it for years, just that now Naya would always rope other people in to maximize the damage. And here I thought she was cured.

Kin was finally able to fly again after a while so I let him go and he took the lead once again. This time however, everyone was closer together than before and side by side like before Naya's little mischief. The two younger members of our group were still sporting slightly pink faces, Naya looked very pleased with herself, and I was just exasperated. _When will she ever stop…?_

"But you two are Saiyans…" Naya said after a few more minutes flight. "I'd never have guessed. Where are your tails then?"

"They were cut off," Kin replied. "It was because we kept transforming into these large apes."

Ah yes the great ape form. I'd never used it, mainly because Vegeta was just about the only one who could create an artificial moon between us and because never once since our meeting Vegeta had we had to use it, not to mention most of our raids were completed before nightfall. In our previous lives, well we never saw moon light, like ever…

"You're being awfully forthcoming all of a sudden, aren't you?" I said.

At that point everyone went quiet and looked at me. Naya looked at me with some surprise, while Kin and Hiyori looked very confused.

"What did we do?" Kin asked.

I looked at him coldly. "Do not forget that we are soldiers of Frieza and we need you only to get home. For some reason you're getting remarkably at ease with us. I just thought I'd give warning, I for one, will not hestitate to do what's necessary and that includes killing you."

Everyone got very quiet. Naya just watched me carefully and then looked ahead on the path we were flying on. Kin went back to take the lead while Hiyori looked at the landscape drifting by below. I eventually turned my gaze ahead. These two had no business trying to make friends here, even if they _were_ just fourteen years old. Whether this was intentional or unintentional they were telling us things better kept to themselves. I didn't want to know, all we needed was a ride not a life story. After a while Naya floated closer to me.

"They were trying to relate to us you know," she said. "First Saiyans met and everything. Plus, don't they interest you? They give off a different vibe than Nappa and Vegeta."

"I'm not interested in knowing other Saiyans," I responded. "I'm content with the ones I do know. These people are just helping us get back where we used to be."

"Well, I am," Naya said. "So I'll be speaking to them a lot from here on. I think we got along so well just then because we all mesh together in some way."

"You trust much too easily."

She smiled. "Yeah well, that's what gave me you."

I paused unsure how to respond to that. There was no denying that statement even if I wanted to; after all if it weren't for her trusting nature Naya would never have been who she was to me today. And if she wasn't so trusting, I'd have killed her that time so long ago. Back when I had no inhibitions toward violence, even fatal violence.

I sighed. "Do as you please."

She grinned and flew up to join Kin, trying once again to start up a conversation. Kin seemed to have overheard us because he was responding very easily to Naya. Or maybe it was his youth coming through, the excitement of speaking to another Saiyan was probably difficult for him to contain. Who was I kidding, he had Saiyan ears, of course he heard us. Hiyori also went up to join them. The thought of those two getting attached exasperated me.

 _And you want to kill Frieza like this?_

Well, it wasn't my problem. I had better things to think about. After all, the other soldiers were still on this planet, not to mention the Chief, and I needed to devise a way to counter either one or even both at once just in case things didn't go right. So I stuck to the back and played with different strategies in my mind. Those two would just be in the way.

 ** _Kin_**

Kin was enjoying his conversation with Naya, surprised by just how friendly she was. She seemed like the kind of person who had nothing to hide and would simply say what was on her mind, at the same time she seemed to be keeping quiet about various things. She was like an enigma, a riddle; one that looked amazingly complex but was actually very simple. That was what she felt like. Kin found himself caught off guard by her easy simplistic way of speaking, of viewing the world, everything.

 _She could have been a great sister if she was like Hiyori and me…_

Kin paused, surprised by the thought. _What are you saying Kin? She's the enemy just like that guy at the back said. We can't get too friendly with people we may have to kill._

The girl was looking at him strangely. Kin blinked. "What?"

"I was just wondering if we were there yet," she answered. "Just we've been flying for a while."

"Oh," he said. "Well, we're just about there. Look."

Up ahead the massive tree trunks and greenery finally gave way to a large open space. Filling this space was a massive expanse of water that seemed to be moving in one direction. This was the river he and Hiyori had parked the ship at and, true to form, there it was on the bank directly in front of them. Kin had never been so glad to see the grey box that was their ship. They could leave and finally face Frieza.

Everyone landed right next to it in a circle facing each other, but before anyone could say anything the bare chested one spoke.

"So, is there anything we're supposed to do before we leave?" he asked lazily.

Kin frowned. This guy… he couldn't read him at all. Did he like them? Did he hate them? Was he really helping? Was he not? Did he really not care about Frieza or not? If not, why? Not just him, the girl too was a mystery and her telling him that she loved meat and acrobatics were not much in the way of getting to know a person's true nature. He couldn't really trust these two, friendly or no. In fact the only reason he'd said so much was because he and Hiyori had only each other. They had absolutely nothing to lose. But he liked the girl, oh yes she was likable. That guy on the other hand…

"I asked a question."

Kin blinked, and realized he had spaced out. The bare chested boy was staring at him with obvious disdain. The girl, Naya, she said her name was, was also looking at him curiously. Hiyori was staring at the both of them looking unsure what to make of them. It seemed she had the same dilemma as him.

"Don't you get rude," Kin growled in return.

The other boy's brown eyes widened in surprise. "Hooo?"

The girl looked at him. "Now look what you've gone and done."

Kin glared at the other boy as strongly as he could despite knowing that he was the weaker one, especially when he was injured. In that intense stare off he noticed that the boy was actually a lot stronger than he looked, energy aside. He was pretty slender but his muscle tone was quite good. His chest was pretty thick, his core was strong, and his arms though slender at first looked pretty big tensed up. Kin got the feeling that this boy was holding back. He raised his gaze to the boy's dark brown eyes.

At that moment, he had lost his very own battle of wills. Those eyes… they were so full of this cold fury… like the boy was just looking for a reason to smash his face in. Like he was on a leash… and that buried deep down there was this blinding rage that wanted to tear him apart. All he needed was a reason… and by challenging him, Kin was giving him one…

Kin's breath caught and he looked down. Hiyori watched him with worry written all over her face, while the girl looked at her partner. His eyes slowly reverted to their previous lazy look and he looked away with a snort. Kin took a moment to recover himself before he looked directly into everyone's faces again.

"Anyway," he said, rubbing one fair arm and doing his best not to betray how shaken he was. "Hiyori and I need to get ourselves healed up, otherwise we can't fly the ship."

"And why is that?" Naya asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Well," Kin began. "We can't man the ship for the entire travel in this condition and you guys can't fly it because you can't use the keys. There's no auto-pilot either, in any shape or form so someone has to fly it all the time."

"And which idiot would believe that?" the boy scoffed, placing his hands in his pockets. "You tell us when you're ready, and if you stall I'll blow you up ship and all."

"Now, now Rikku…" Naya cut in. "That's a bit much at this point."

She squatted down and began rummaging in the grass. "Ooh, I want to make a grass whistle, could you help me out?"

Rikku glared at them for a second, and then joined her in looking for a suitable weed. Kin found himself relieved. That guy was actually a very dangerous person, and so far he hadn't thought twice about killing them if they got in the way. He reinforced the once easily forgotten fact: They were _not_ friends.

Kin turned to his sister. "Alright Hiyori, let's go."

He walked to the ship, holding her hand and placed his palm on the door built into the side. It slid up to allow them entry and they both walked in. Kin was engulfed in happiness once he saw the interior of the ship. After that monstrosity had shown up he had thought he would never see the inside of the ship again.

The interior was a giant room with six bunk beds with red bedding against the walls on either side, two big blue chairs stacked in front of the floor to ceiling viewing screen and at the back a series of white panels that stood out from the overall grey back drop. The floor was glossy and dark blue. The entire room was very cool thanks to the specialized ventilation.

He let out a breath and went to one of the cabinets to retrieve the necessary supplies. He pulled out his old planet's brand of ointment and some bandages while Hiyori sat on one of the beds. Once he brought them over Kin proceeded to remove his gi and the shirt underneath and Hiyori put the ointment on the burnt patches on his skin. As she worked, Kin wondered, dirt aside it was strange how their clothes received no damage. _What kind of attacks were those? Who was that guy?_

"Kin the guy outside his scary," Hiyori said, moving on to bandage him up. "Should we really still ask them for help? We don't need them at this point right?"

"I know," Kin said, gritting his teeth a bit as she tightened it. "To get off this planet we don't but to find Frieza we do."

Hiyori remained silent and lifted her hands away from him, having completed covering him up. Kin stood up, and gestured for her to turn around. Hiyori did so, having complete faith in him. Being her brother, there was nothing both had not seen. Hiyori slipped her gi off her shoulders and let the top part hang around her waist while Kin got to work in his usual gentle but business-like manner.

"That's why I said we should heal up first," Kin admitted. "That way we have more of a fighting chance if they cause trouble, although, he saw right through me."

Hiyori flinched just a bit as Kin passed over a particularly severe burn. "That can't be good. Maybe you should have just come out and said that you wanted an advantage to make things fair. You could have said you wouldn't fly the ship otherwise."

Kin indicated she lift her arms with a tap on both elbows and proceeded to wrap her torso up in bandages.

"That's admitting that we have no leverage over them, which is just as bad. Also they could just use force," Kin answered, as he finished up. "I mean aside from the pendants… Oh no."

Hiyori slipped on her gi and turned around. "What?"

"Hiyori where's your pendant?"

"It's hanging on the inside of my belt," she answered, taking it out and displaying it for him to see. "I didn't want to lose it when that thing showed up so I hid it."

It was black pendant shaped like a key that hung onto a plain green chain. Kin should have had his, a silver key hanging on a dark blue chain. Without them both they couldn't start the ship. This was a problem. How did he lose it? Kin began pacing while Hiyori watched him until he finally stopped. He was going to have ask them for help, those two outside…

 ** _Rikku_**

I handed Naya another piece of grass and watched her blow uselessly. I was lying on the grass, resting my head on one hand while Naya sat cross legged opposite me, still trying to blow. Eventually she gave up and looked at me, "You know I'm starting to think this isn't about the type of grass and more about your own skills."

"You don't say…"

She flicked my arm. "Don't you sass me."

I rubbed it lazily, unwilling to do much else about it. "Yes, yes I won't do it again."

"Blatant lip service…"

I smiled. "Whatever, go back to blowing on your weeds."

"I _will_ kill you one day."

The sound of rushed footsteps alerted me to Kin's presence and I turned my head to find him running over to us. Naya and I stood up as one, taking time to make sure that no grass followed us up.

"What's up?" Naya asked.

Kin looked slightly better now that he had treated himself and had an easier expression on his face. His arms were covered in bandages and there was probably some wrapped around his torso too if I were to guess correctly. Their burns had been pretty severe, leaving sooty patches all over their skin although their clothes, aside from dirt, were fine. I wondered briefly, not for the first time since picking them up, what they were hit with.

"Well, I kind of need your help for something," Kin explained. "My key, the key to flying the ship is missing."

Naya blinked while I just glared at him. Of all the blunders…

"It must have fallen off when Hiyori and I were attacked," Kin continued, doing his best to ignore me.

"Well go find it then," I said.

Kin glared back at me. "In this condition? I need help for a _reason_."

"You aren't so weak you can't handle a few oversized animals are you?"

Kin growled and threw a jab that I dodged. By the time his hand retracted my foot was by his head.

Kin froze, well aware that he had just "died". Had this been real, he would no longer be with the living. I slowly lowered my leg back down to the ground.

"Well, you annoy me and I'd honestly rather kill you and be done with it," I said. "But it's much easier going with you than having to kill two weaklings and some super strong bastard. Hurry up and decide who's going to look for this thing."

Kin looked confused but I didn't bother to elaborate. The one who was important knew what I meant.

"Well, we do need to divide the manpower evenly in case of any unforeseen events," Naya said, taking her cue. "That means one of each of us goes. Kin since it's your pendant you have to look for it, goes without saying."

She turned to me, looking up into my eyes with her lighter brown ones. "Now it's a matter of whether you or I will go with him."

"That's a matter of choice more than anything," I said.

She shook her head. "Between us you're faster and more manoeuvrable, the job'll be done quicker even if only marginally. So you'll go."

Kin frowned with dissatisfaction but did not protest. I sighed knowing there was no way past it now, especially since he raised no objection. I floated upward slowly while Kin turned to Naya.

"Please protect Hiyori," he said.

Naya simply nodded and then he also joined me in the air.

"You're leading the way," I said, without looking at him.

He blasted off into the forest in response and I reluctantly followed after him, leaving Naya behind. I caught up easily with Kin, tree trunks and branches whipping by the two of us as we flew at high speed or at least, something much faster than the first time. My aura surrounded me, protecting me from air resistance.

We flew for about 10 minutes in silence, during which I found myself with absolutely nothing to do. This was boring, all I wanted to do was get back to base and relax not because of any particular attachment but because this whole thing was a pain. Things were simple a while back, go to planet, purge planet, sell planet. Now there were people gone missing, and suspicious behaviour on all fronts. Then we had a mission way above what we expected and Vegeta was gone doing his own thing, Frieza may possibly be trying to have us taken out and now there were these two. It was a bit much. I liked things simple, you get a job, you get it done. You have a family, keep them safe. You have a dream, fulfil it. I didn't like all this confusion coming in from left and right.

 _So when we get back to base, what do we do from there?_

I blinked as the thought crossed my mind. Say Frieza really was trying to kill us… how would we proceed from there? Kill him? Or at least try…

I smiled wryly at that. Hmm… or maybe we could run away? But if so, where to? We had nowhere to go. Maybe Vegeta knew somewhere… but where was he now? What was he doing? I frowned as another thought occurred to me. Was he in on this, and if he was, was he with us or against us? As a Saiyan I would say the answer to that question was obvious but I was never one to assume something simply because I believed it was right. No matter how much I respected Vegeta, I'd learned to look out for the worst so I was never disappointed and, more importantly, I was always prepared. That included family. Naya was the only person who had never disappointed me in anyway, not because she tried hard but because she was herself. Naya was reliable because she always said and did what she thought when she felt like it. She never went behind my back and would always confront me directly and because of that even when we disagreed, we supported each other. No one else was like that, not even Vegeta or Nappa. Naya I could trust because she was always true to herself.

A change in scenery alerted me to our arrival in wrecked part of the forest we'd found Kin and Hiyori in. A more accurate term would be the wasteland we'd found them in. Both Kin and I came to a stop over the now ashy ground. I looked around noting that visibility was much better than the last time I'd come here, probably because the wind had blown away most of the dust in the air over time.

The air was warm and somehow it was very humid compared with how dry it was before. Kin turned in place, already scanning the area. I rose higher, looking for the street like trench I found them in. I found the area where the ashy ground tapered to a point and headed for that. It took me mere seconds to cover the distance large though it was. I landed at the spot where I found them, just yesterday morning and grimaced as my feet sank into the ash and dirt. Now I would have dirt between my toes.

I shook my feet in disgust, trying to get rid of said dirt. These sandal type boots were great for the martial arts but tended to be bad for sandy places. I walked around placing my steps more carefully. This was going to take us a while. I searched the entire trough by walking from edge to edge all the while travelling down its length. It was long and tedious and I lost focus more than a few times, mainly because it was a pain. I could just barely see Kin as a speck in the distance, flying randomly over the wasteland like a fly with its eyes on a meal. After about an hour of searching the length of the sixty foot wide trough, my eye problem kicked in in full force.

I felt a twinge of pain in my eyes and my surroundings began to blur. I cursed, shut my eyes and shook my head in an involuntary effort to clear the blurred vision. I had been too long without my glasses, not that I'd worn them since we arrived. I'd left them back at Outpost 244 because I figured the mission would be short. A few days was ok, as long as I rested at regular intervals. However, when things turned out differently the status quo had changed and I'd been straining my eyes to keep up. Now, they were making me pay for it.

I opened my eyes and grimaced as the world blurred in and out of focus, with shifting glares. Then my vision began to swim and I shut them again, squatting to bury my head between my knees. My head started to hurt. I opened my eyes again and looked up as they began to water dangerously. The glare from the sun seared my eyes and I looked down again cursing as black spots danced in front of my already messed up vision. Another twinge of pain followed that.

 _Can't believe this is happening now…_

At this rate, I couldn't find Kin's key or whatever. I sat on the sand and kept my eyes closed. I stayed like that for a long time, possibly an hour or so, feeling the heat of the sun intensify over time. It was getting to afternoon, and judging from the heat the sun was still very bright. I heard a loud whistling sound and groaned… I didn't have time for this guy right now…

There was a crunch of dirt as Kin landed nearby began walking very quickly to me.

"I should have known you would do something like this," he said angrily. "You just don't care do you?"

He came to a rough stop in front of me that kicked sand into my face. I was immediately furious but I didn't move or betray the emotion. Instead I spat the sand out and said, "You kicked sand in my face."

" _That's_ what's important to you?!" he answered. "Listen, all you've done since we met is give me grief. Does it not matter to you that we leave this planet?! If you don't care, say so and we'll find a way off ourselves."

"You're not in the position to judge that," I answered evenly, belying how I felt. I still didn't look up or open my eyes. "If we didn't need you, you would be dead."

He paused, suddenly quiet. Then… "Oh yeah, that's right. You're soldiers of Frieza, all you do is murder for money, how could I expect anything more. Fine, I'll find it myself, you just sit there. After all, you have no obligation to help. We're hostages, the deal is just you guys being nice. We're just going off to die trying to kill Frieza right?"

"That's about right," I responded, beginning to calm down again. I'd recovered my temper.

For several seconds Kin didn't move, and I figured he was contemplating hitting me. Even in this condition, I could still fight with little problems so I wasn't too worried about him. It was painful, but I could do it and that was what mattered. There were a couple of things I didn't get: Why was he so angry? After all this was just a temporary alliance between lions and sheep. Was he viewing us as friends or even worse, equals? I wanted nothing to do with these people and him jumping to conclusions over why I was sitting here pissed me off. This was all just to get off this planet. I didn't need the extra hassle of knowing unnecessary people. Things were more beneficial this way, he got to have at Frieza without trouble and we got to get back to base to find out what was going on, whatever that may be.

"Why are you trying to make friends here?" I demanded. "Do you think because we're Saiyans I'm obligated to be nice to you?!"

 _Oh damn, I thought I had it…_

Kin seemed surprise by the force in my tone. "I'm not trying to make friends or anything I just-"

"Just what?!" I growled, shooting to my feet and glaring at him. "You act like I'm _supposed_ to be helping you! What because we said we'd work together?!"

I could barely see but the roughly humanoid blue shape in front of me was most definitely Kin.

"We're strangers," I said coldly. "Don't make the mistake of forgetting that again. Naya is friendly and trusting and I don't know why you're being so friendly or even if you're planning something. I don't know whether you're being genuine or not, I don't even know what you hope to gain from getting to know us. All of that is none of my concern. There is only what I came to do and how I get it done, remember that."

Kin looked down, suddenly very quiet. As the silver top of the blurred blue blob that he was bent forward I realized that Kin hadn't noticed he was being too friendly, that he was demanding too much of strangers, that he had forgotten who exactly he was dealing with. This guy had probably been alone a long time. That was why he'd been so awkward when we first met, using such a formal introduction with us even though we were enemies. Being easily affected by Naya's antics, being unable to shut up about his life… He was just a guy who'd lost a lot trying and failing to be tough for whatever reason. He probably didn't realize how familiar he was acting because he was unconsciously yearning for someone to talk to, someone to relate to and two new Saiyans didn't get much better than that. Essentially, he liked us and trusted us even if he didn't think so.

I took a breath to calm myself. This boy was all too aware we were the enemy, I'd made sure of that and yet he still kept talking, still expected some amount of courtesy. He'd said he had nothing to hide but even so that was no reason to blab everything. He just needed someone to talk to. Now I had reached this conclusion, I had to see if it was true.

"How long ago was your planet attacked?" I asked.

The silver blob rose again but I couldn't see his expression. I wondered vaguely if he had noticed I couldn't really see.

"9 years ago," he answered. "Why?"

Inwardly I grimaced. _He answered even before he wanted to know why…_

"And since then it's just been you and Hiyori and no one else?" I continued. "Not even in passing?"

The silver blob bobbed, meaning he was nodding. Then he asked why again. I gave an exasperated sigh, once again he answered even though he had no idea why I was asking this. My headache spiked as my eyes gave another twinge. The pain was so powerful it brought me to my knees, tears leaking out my eyes. Involuntarily, I groaned.

Kin rushed over and put his hand on my shoulder. "Are you ok? Do you need help?"

"You're… being… too familiar…" I warned, shrugging him off.

Another wave of pain had me rocking on my knees while I clutched my head. I kept my eyes shut, determined not to open them again. This guy was way too nice as well. Naya's words came back to me.

 _I think we all got along so well just then because we all mesh in some way…_

God, this was going to be a pain but I had to admit, I didn't completely dislike him. Maybe I would give them the benefit of the doubt, if they were allies or even friends worth having… that would depend on what they did from here. Thinking of the future now didn't look very bright considering what these two wanted but I already had an idea how I could get them into the Frieza Force if necessary and also if the Frieza Force were our enemy it would be good to have people backing us up. It was good to think ahead but I needed to focus on the here and now, and these two weren't even aware of how attached to Naya and I they were getting. _If_ things turned out that way, I would have them covered but if not it was less hassle really.

I stopped rocking and said, "My eyes aren't fully focused on their own."

"Huh?"

"My glasses naturally correct that by doing it for me but without them I have to strain to see," I explained. "Doing that tires me out, not to mention it hurts my eyes if done for long periods of time. Then I get headaches that vary in strength depending on how long I've been without them. That's why I stopped searching for your pendant."

"I didn't know-," Kin began.

"Yes, you didn't," I said. "Now you do, so leave me alone. I want to rest."

Kin slowly stood up. "Look, I'm sorry if I've been a pain."

I frowned. "Why are you apologising to your enemy?"

I was unable to tell if Kin was smiling or not but he sounded amused when he said, "I don't know. I can't help the way I talk to you guys, it's just so easy to slip… I suppose the best way to describe it is a vibe you give. It's hard to control what I say and do around you both."

"Easy to slip, huh?" I said, lying down in the dirt and placing my arms behind my head. "Do I really look that friendly?"

Shirtless as I was, I could feel that the ash was soft but the dirt in it made it slightly gritty. It was like lying on soft tissue coated with pieces of sandpaper.

Kin laughed. "Oh you look anything but friendly."

I frowned again. "Oi."

"It's just… I feel like I have nothing to fear from you despite evidence to the contrary," he said finally. "That's the best way to describe it."

I lay there in silence for several minutes just thinking on that. _Nothing to fear from me, huh?_

Just like what Naya said back then…

 _Cages… So many cages… various people in all of them but me in the thickest of them. The one I'd earned by nearly killing the previous owner… the one that stared down a hallway full of cells… no cages… and the person in the cage directly to my right… a brown haired ten year old girl who sat glaring at me with equally brown eyes… And I was glaring right back at her because I had failed to destroy her during our fight. She sat there with a broken arm and a cast leg, staring at me with a vengeance…_

 _"_ _I'll kill you next time," she promised. "I have nothing to fear from you."_

I gave a wry smile. _I'm really not much then am I?_

I felt Kin get up. "He must have fallen asleep… "

He took a deep breath and did what sounded a lot like stretching. "I'll search around here then, kill two birds with one stone."

With that his footsteps receded, crunching in the sand and ash.

A few seconds later I heard him berating himself out loud. "Dammit, Kin what the hell did you go and say all that for? Saiyans or not they're the enemy. Why can't you just do the sensible thing and leave them alone?!"

There was a loud thud indicating he hit something, himself possibly.

I shook my head inwardly. He really was too nice. He didn't even consider taking me as a hostage despite my displaying a blatant weakness not to mention the fact that he thought I was asleep. Hell, he was even sticking close to guard me while searching for his pendant. It seemed he really believed he had nothing to fear from me… Well, I couldn't think too much about it. I needed to rest, besides- I shifted a bit to allow myself to sink in further- the breathing I'd heard behind the treeline some distance away definitely didn't belong to anyone we knew because it was much too thick. Someone was preparing to make a move and I had to rest my eyes. I had to count on Naya until I recovered and then… then… someone would have to be silenced.

 _Shadow Grotto_

The trunk shook as each blow landed on it with great force. Shadah was constantly moving, pounding the tree with all the skill at his disposal. He had circled the massive tree several times already since he began training that morning and now it was afternoon. He had noticed that the boy used mainly kicks and was now practicing using only close combat techniques on the tree, his father meanwhile was resting some distance away having come to watch only for his tiredness to take him over. Shadah's consultations with the other warriors revealed that the problem with kicks was that they were slow due to the extra distance they needed to travel and thus ineffective in combat, in addition they were poor for close range fighting due to their extended range and the fact that they left the groin open. This time Shadah would be prepared.

As he paused to take a break the scout his father had sent out this morning came running toward his father at speed. The scout was slim and covered in brown fur, with a very generic sort of face. He didn't particularly stand out and that made him a great scout. Shadah left the tree, walked to his father and shook him awake. Sanza eyes slowly opened, and the red furred chief sat up, rubbing his eyes.

"What is it?" he asked, stifling a yawn.

"The scout is back," Shadah explained.

Sanza turned his head to look at the now kneeling scout. "Ah, I see," he responded. To the scout he said, "What's your report?"

The brown furred Veridian bowed his head and said, "I found the enemy in a wasteland to the north of here. It's a great big patch of ash."

Sanza frowned while Shadah blinked in confusion. "Wasteland?"

"Yes," the scout confirmed. "It seemed like they blasted the forest away, leaving only a circle of destruction. Last I saw they were still there."

Sanza looked furious that they would do something so crass as to destroy part of the forest and it showed on his face. His already very dark skin looked positively black and his red eyes glowed with quiet fury.

"What were they doing?" Sanza said, his voice full of rage yet even.

The scout shivered a bit but did not move. "It seemed they were looking for something and it sounded like there were more, judging from the conversation they had. They did seem to be enemies too or at least they were selfish in nature. I traced signs of disturbance back to their base but it was tough…"

"And why is that?" Sanza asked.

The scout did not look up and with good reason. Sanza didn't sound very happy.

"Sir, it seems the enemy can fly," he scout said.

There was an extremely disturbing silence following that as Shadah realized he had failed to mention this. Sanza was very quiet, as the scout suddenly began to shiver. Shadah too was unsure how his father was going to react.

The scout quickly spoke up again in a bid to absolve himself of whatever was coming. "Sir, in tracing their route I discovered some sort of vessel guarded by two more of them, females this time."

The new information was met with stony silence. At this point, Shadah knew he was in trouble, punishment was only a matter of time and place. He felt ashamed that once again he had proven himself incompetent in the eyes of his father.

Sanza finally stood up, picking up the spear that he had dropped when he fell asleep. Shadah looked at him anxiously as a feeling of expectation came over him, of excitement. Father was going to declare war and he would have his chance to pay the bronze skinned one back for what he did to him and even redeem himself in the eyes of his father. Punishment would come later but for now there would be retribution. A certain tension filled the air around Sanza and Shadah could feel it, the scout could feel it.

"I spent a long time thinking about how best to deal with the threat once we came across it," Sanza growled. "I thought I would send all the warriors but they were already killed once, then again that was without a leader. Of course, I then discovered the enemy could fly."

Shadah bowed his head in shame. How could he have forgotten such a detail…?

"Shadah…"

Shadah tensed in response to his name. "Yes, father."

"You and I will take them down and the warriors will watch," Sanza said. "They will take away any chance for escape the enemy will have while we destroy them."

"Yes, Father."

"Scout, inform the warriors while my son and I prepare. We leave now!"

"At once Chief!"

* * *

 **AN: Right, I had a real tussle with this one as I said, so many possibilities. Anyway, there's going to be a lot of fighting from here on out until this arc ends so. I think I had something to say but now I can't remember what it is and I don't want to delay anymore in putting this up so I'll just drop it here. Until the next.**


	6. Chapter 5

**Hey people, sorry that it's been a while. I had exams to write and now I'm free of high school so. Although, I'm in a boarding house sand have yet to go home so I can't get to churning out the chapters quite yet but at least it's something to look forward to. I tried to make this one as interesting as possible to make up for my absence. So here you go.**

 **Disclaimer:** **I do not own Dragon ball Z but I bet you wish I did, right? C'mon, you could at least lie...**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

 ** _Naya_**

Naya sat on the grass idly picking at weeds. She'd stopped blowing on them a while back, having given up on her grass whistle after Rikku and Kin left. Frankly she wasn't motivated to do it anymore because the difficulty made her lose interest. There was no point investing so much time into a useless skill.

 _I hope Rikku didn't kill him._

Naya sighed. She was well aware that Rikku did not have the best temper although he did not fight without reason no matter how furious you made him but she had come to notice that Kin was shrewd, if not very observant, and he might say or do something that challenged something Rikku felt was worth fighting over. What exactly motivated Rikku to violence was a mystery to her and she could usually only tell after the fact. Rikku was very strange and quiet, never voicing his thoughts unless necessary. She could understand why no other soldiers spoke to him. He didn't even look friendly, his eyes constantly holding this disinterested look like he'd rather be elsewhere thinking about something other than your problems or your opinions, his face would turn incredibly dull when you said something obvious or stupid and he always gave short answers, leaving little room for conversation.

But Naya had learned with time that Rikku was actually a very nice person given you didn't irritate him. The thing was he operated on a set of rules he had come to view as the right way based on how he observed the world around him same as everyone else. He was willing to revise those rules as he learned new things both from his environment and the people around him but the problem was that he would always stick by those principles even when they went against him. This made him stiff to people who would like a more easygoing sort of person and it also made him the type of person you couldn't talk bull to. If you wanted Rikku to do something, to listen to you, to whatever… there had to be a good reason or he would never bother.

Naya didn't have that problem with him, although knowing what he was thinking about important things was difficult mainly because he never voiced his thoughts unless absolutely necessary, preferring to tailor his actions to direct events his way. He joked with her a lot and told her a lot but never once had he said how he felt about anything. You could only get his general outlook because he would merely say something like "That's stupid." You could pester him and ask him why and he'd give a generalized answer simply because he was unwilling to explain it to you. Naya however, could tell usually because she tended to think the same things just not on quite the same scale. The level of detail with which Rikku defined something was pretty scary but it also meant that he gave things a lot of thought before he decided something and once that decision was made he would not budge.

Naya knew that Rikku wouldn't do anything without good reason but she also knew that if he decided that Kin was worth killing, he would not stop until the boy was gone.

"Umm… Naya…"

Naya blinked and looked across from her, where Hiyori had been sitting for quite some time being ignored. The other girl was staring directly at Naya, her eyes not showing a hint of discomfort in the current social situation, a far cry from how she behaved when Rikku was around. Although, Rikku wasn't exactly the most approachable guy to begin with so it was no surprise really. Naya on the other hand, had mastered her aura and obviously looked much friendlier than Rikku but truth be told, she was just as bad as him.

"What is it?" Naya responded, crossing her legs.

"I thought, since we would be working together I should get to know you a little better," Hiyori said softly.

Hiyori was sitting on her legs, resting her hands on her lap and staring expectantly at Naya with her black eyes. Naya almost smiled as she realized that Hiyori was soft in speech but no less spirited for it.

 _Now here's a scary one…_

Naya didn't bother smiling and said, "Uh-huh, so what is it you want to know?"

"I won't be telling you any deep back stories or anything just so you know," she warned. " Oh and no secrets either."

Hiyori nodded. "I just wanted to understand you and Rikku better. I think that would help me understand whether you can be trusted or not."

Naya frowned. "Your logic is flawed. What if I lie?"

Hiyori's flat expression did not change. "Then I will know that you cannot."

 _Ooh, definitely a scary one here._

Naya sat for several seconds in silence wondering what exactly Hiyori wanted to know. There were so many things someone in her position could want to know that Naya was very much averse to revealing. This girl was a lot more level headed than her brother it seemed, friendly though she had been before-

Naya paused there. Friendly was inaccurate. Hiyori had joined in the conversation but had never said much, only asking questions and giving tiny smiles whenever a joke came up. This girl had been watching them, observing not truly socializing. The thought made her a lot more wary. As Naya realized this, Hiyori spoke up again.

"First of all, I can't read the both of you," Hiyori said. "The way you both behave is very inconsistent. I feel like you're doing it on purpose."

Naya didn't even need to think. "You just can't find what is most consistent in everything we do. Don't think about it too much, you'll need to know us a lot better to see it."

As Hiyori digested this information, Naya took a moment to wonder exactly how many times she had said that to people now. She knew it was hard to figure out exactly what made her do the things she did and that was made people so hesitant to speak to her, you never knew what reaction you were going to get. It was no big surprise to find that Hiyori had run into this same problem. Naya had alternated between, mediator, quiet thinker and conversationalist so far with no apparent correlation between the three so it was no wonder Hiyori was unsure what to make of her. As for Rikku, well that was an entirely different ball game and Hiyori probably knew this if she was that observant.

"I also have a question for you, Hiyori," Naya said, looking her in the eye.

Hiyori blinked in what looked like mild surprise.

"You seem a lot more observant than you let on, why is that? Did you maybe, run into trouble at some point in your life? Something happen to make you paranoid?"

Hiyori considered the question for a time. The heat of the afternoon sun was cozy when combined with the breeze, and the sound of the water flowing by next to the ship created a very calming melody. The sky above was bright and blue and reminded Naya that there was a need to keep the mood light, a heavy one would just make the conversation odd. Well, more odd.

"My brother isn't observant," Hiyori answered. "He's smart but that's all he's got, so I just point things out to him."

Naya nodded. "I see. So, what was your next question?"

Hiyori took a deep breath and said, "Why is Rikku so annoyed with us?"

Naya smiled knowingly. "Ah, I knew that would be coming up at some point," she said. "And the answer is he's not angry with you."

"He's angry about something else then?"

"No to that too."

Hiyori looked very confused.

"Look Hiyori, we won't do anything to you guys if that's what you're worried about," Naya said sitting up and stretching. Her legs had been going numb and it felt good to stretch them.

"Rikku and I form an odd pair," she explained. "It's not so easy to figure out what makes us tick and it isn't something I should be telling you. Relax, we won't do anything because we decided we won't, it's as simple as that."

Naya noticed Hiyori's frown but chose to ignore it. If the younger one stuck around long enough she would get it eventually. Hiyori sat on the grass thinking on what Naya had just said, clearly a lot more confused than enlightened. Naya had come to view this as standard fare when dealing with new people and simply made room for it in all her social interactions. People were… complicated.

Naya considered saying something more and then paused, disturbed. "That's strange…" she wondered out loud.

Hiyori looked at her with renewed interest. "What is it?"

"Isn't the sun remarkably bright all of a sudden?"

Hiyori looked up for a few seconds and then stood up in surprise. "You're right. Why all of a sudden-?"

Naya immediately began sweeping her gaze around the area, her thoughts racing. Was there an unseen enemy or was this natural for this planet? She was very much unsure, after all aside from the gigantic natural life and the natural order it maintained this planet had nothing going for it. What could possibly be the cause? Was it something to worry about? Naya, turned around once more…

Right into a blast of energy.

 ** _Kin_**

Kin sifted through the sand, more than a little frustrated that he hadn't found his pendant yet. He sat back on his haunches and sighed. They'd been here for hours now but the sun was thankfully still shining bright despite it being late afternoon by this point.

Kin looked over his shoulder at the prone form of Rikku. The guy hadn't moved since he fell asleep which was hours ago… how long was he going to lie there anyway? But Kin felt wary of waking him up, mainly because this guy wasn't exactly approachable, even in his sleep. He looked like he was pissed come on! How did you even do that in your sleep? Kin liked his hands and didn't want to lose them thanks. Maybe a stick from afar would do the trick…

Nah, Rikku would kill him. Definitely kill him… and probably the stick too… Kin really didn't want to wake him up, it didn't feel right to him, but he had also been searching for his pendant this entire time and found nothing so he wasn't sure how to proceed. He needed Rikku to help him search, perhaps he'd missed something. Hiyori _did_ always say how he could never find things right in front of him so maybe Rikku would find it. He was conflicted as to what to do.

 _Why am I so intimidated anyway?_ Kin thought. _There's really nothing impressive about this guy. He's not big, he's not imposing… There's nothing to be afraid of c'mon Kin. Wake him up._

Kin stood up and walked over to Rikku, but right before he was about to touch him the older Saiyan growled, "Don't you dare!"

Kin paused in shock, his whole body cold all of a sudden. Rikku's eyes opened, staring directly at him. It took Kin a few seconds to think of something to say but he finally managed with, "You were awake."

"Yes, I was."

"Then why didn't you help me look?" Kin demanded, irritated. "I still haven't found it you know, some help would be nice."

"There you go again acting like I'm your friend or something," Rikku commented, sitting up.

"We may not be friends but you _are_ supposed to help me out or we both lose out on this deal," Kin pointed out.

"You could say that but you're not our only way out, just the most convenient," Rikku admitted. "Anyway, I was resting my eyes not sleeping. You just assumed I was asleep."

"That doesn't matter," Kin said, determined not to go off on a tangent although he was pretty sure that could be counted as sleep. He tried not to focus too much on what Rikku had just said about being the most convenient.

"True," Rikku said, getting to his feet with a yawn and a stretch. "Let's go then."

Kin frowned. "Wait, we still haven't found the pendant."

"I have."

"Eh?"

Rikku stretched one more time and let loose a shout for good measure. "Ah, so refreshing…" he said, bouncing a few times.

"Rikku you found it?" Kin asked. "When? How?"

"I rolled over it while I was resting," Rikku answered, giving him a flat look. Clearly, this guy wanted to move on but Kin was surprised. That aside he had to be sure.

"Could you pass it for a second?" Kin asked.

"Yeah, whatever," Rikku answered. He reached into the sand he had been resting on and pulled out a silver key attached to a dark blue chain.

"Although I fail to see how this is a pendant," Rikku added as he handed it over. "It's not just an accessory."

Kin ignored the jibe and focused on examining the key and chain for damage or anything that would give it away as a fake. Finally he put it around his neck and prepared to take off. He paused as a thought occurred to him.

"Wait, Rikku."

"What?"

The response was impatient but Kin ignored that. "How did you guys know to call it a pendant when I never described it that way to you?"

"You did describe it that way but that was after _we_ called it a pendant," Rikku said. "We could hear you from outside; you left the door open against two people with Saiyan senses."

Kin swore.

"Whatever, can we get a move on, I'm tempted to beat you up and drag you there."

Kin blinked. "You wouldn't."

"Don't give me an excuse."

Kin stood there unsure how to respond. Rikku didn't look like he was joking but on the other hand he was smiling quite normally, frankly the dual message was leaving Kin unsure if Rikku really would or would not beat him up and for some reason that was more disturbing than if he'd made it clear. Rikku seemed aware of this and this seemed only to make him smile the more to the point where Kin couldn't tell what he was smiling about anymore, not that he knew to begin with.

 _Roll with it._

"Umm, anyway you're right," Kin said finally. "We should get moving."

Rikku was already levitating, impatiently eyeing Kin who was still on the ground. The younger Saiyan quickly and sheepishly burst into the air on a straight course toward the ship with Rikku immediately following afterward. After spending so much time simply walking around and digging through dirt Kin had been pretty restless and so flew much faster than before. Rikku had no trouble keeping up, and when Kin glanced at him once, he even seemed to be lost in thought.

Kin wondered vaguely what he was thinking about. Come to think of it, that was the one thing Rikku seemed to have done the most since they met. He was always thinking about something; what could possibly be on his mind worth spending so much brain power on? Did he need help with something? Kin found that despite his attitude he actually liked Rikku. He hadn't wanted to think about it but there were times when he slipped and he was unsure whether Rikku had noticed or not. The guy wasn't saying anything. Even though he knew no good would come of it, Kin found that he actually wanted to be friends with Rikku and speak to him the way he could speak to Hiyori.

He shook his head as he whipped by several moss ridden trunks, having already cleared the wasteland they were in. That wasn't happening, ever. Rikku was a distant kind of guy as it was, even if they were friends he would never get that sort of friendship anyway. Plus, him and Naya were part of the Frieza Force and he wanted to kill Frieza, they had every reason to kill him once this was over. He had to put his emotions aside. He'd always had Hiyori, so Hiyori would be enough.

But perhaps he could get to know them just a little. He remembered how Rikku shot him down the first time but maybe this time would be different. After all, he was well rested and everything now right?

"You know, I can't figure you out," Kin said after a while.

Rikku didn't even look at him. "It's par the course."

Kin blanched. _He must hear that a lot…_

They flew in silence for a few seconds and then Rikku spoke.

"And Naya?"

Kin took a moment to respond, caught off guard by the unexpected question.

"Ummm, no. I don't get her too. You guys are pretty confusing."

Rikku smiled wryly. "Figures."

"What figures?" Kin asked, curious.

"Too long to explain to you," came the reply.

Kin thought about it. "I suppose so but seeing as the silence is pretty deep maybe-"

"I like the silence."

"Oh."

Trees and branches flashed by at impressive speed and Kin realized he didn't have much of a window to talk to Rikku. At this speed they would get there in ten minutes tops.

 _Geez, he's not giving me any openings._

"Perhaps Naya will be willing to explain it to you," Rikku finally said.

"Huh?"

"Never mind, just ask Naya when we get back."

"Oh," Kin said. "Ok then."

 _Damn, just when he said something I could've worked with._

Kin sighed. This conversation was going nowhere.

 ** _Hiyori_**

Hiyori stared in shock at the spot where Naya had been standing unable to believe her eyes. Behind her stood two furry men, one red and one green the latter being the smaller of the two. The red one looked ferocious despite being slightly disheveled, standing easily four heads taller than Hiyori with red eyes gazing at her. The green guy, while scary, looked positively apologetic compared to the other one.

Hiyori turned and got into her fighting stance with her hands raised in front of her palms up and one foot in front of the other, shoulder width apart. The green one had just taken Naya out in one blast and he was the one emitting the least amount of energy between the two. Hiyori was scared. She knew that she couldn't face either of them alone even if they came at her one at a time and frankly they didn't look very accommodating.

"Shadah," the red furred one said. "Finish off the other one."

"Yes father," the green one replied and raised one hand.

Hiyori tensed as her knees began to shake. There was no way she could handle something like this alone and not at full power! Was this how she was going to die? Disposed of like some small fry… Such a sad joke, she couldn't even handle two strangers and she wanted to beat Frieza? She was so stupid! So stupid for wanting to do something like that and more so for dragging Kin into it. Maybe it was better this way… if she died Kin could be free. He owed her nothing… he'd been a great brother to her.

The green furred man's hand glowed with green light as he prepared his technique once more.

"Oi, oi are you kidding me?"

The green furred guy paused in surprise

Hiyori whipped around to see Naya standing right in the blast zone of the first shot her entire body smoking. Her armor had been blown off her, leaving only a black skin tight tank top that was covered in dirt clearly from the explosion. The girl was hunched over clutching her side, in obvious pain. One hand hung free, with blood dripping down it. She was also bleeding from her mouth and was covered in dirt. To say she was a mess was an understatement.

Hiyori noticed that the there was a large rock behind Naya that had not been there before and that rock had blood on it.

Hiyori's eyes widened. _No way… don't tell me she kicked up the ground so she wouldn't get blown away. That's stupid! Why would she do that?! Wouldn't it have been better to get blown away?!_

Despite all this Naya was smiling.

"I could have died you know," she chastised them.

Hiyori was stunned. _What?_

The red furred one spoke, "Fire again."

The green furred one raised his hand and suddenly Naya was crushing it in her own. "I'll have none of that thanks."

The enemy buckled to his knees in pain. His partner lashed out at Naya with a kick but she backflipped clear and landed in a fighting stance. The red furred one got into one of his own while the green one clutched his hand and glared at her.

Hiyori was very surprised. Wasn't Naya injured just now? Heck, she was still bleeding. How did she move so fast and do so much damage like that?

"Hey, green guy," Naya said.

You had to admire the ease and precision she radiated in that stance. It was obvious to any practiced martial artist she was very used to it, and had no problems executing her techniques from that base. Her gaze was also strong, full of focus and fire. Hiyori was glad she wasn't looking at her.

The green furred guy also seemed to see this because he was slightly cowed when he looked her in the eye.

"That attack of yours just now, it needs to follow through to do any real damage doesn't it?" Naya asked. "It was still expanding when it hit me, meaning it wasn't at full power yet."

He blinked in surprise which made Naya smirk. "I figured it shouldn't have been so weak if you were aiming to kill, after all you've fought me before."

Her expression turned mocking. "Although, it was more Rikku than me. I must ask how are you still alive?"

Wait, they had fought before? Hiyori found herself looking back and forth between them unsure what was going on. And what she said just now about the attack, she kicked up the rock so she could stop it short? If the attack really did need time to give maximum damage, stopping it short would reduce the damage greatly. It explained the rock and lent a certain amount of credibility to Naya's choice in response. It explained why she was so well off even though she was bleeding. She hadn't had time to harness her power and was injured against the rock but by kicking up that rock she was able to chock the attack before it could do any heavy damage.

Hiyori was shocked she had been able to respond in such a short time. _This girl is good. So this is the Saiyan army of the Frieza Force._

The green one got to his feet and took a stance as well saying, "You have good reflexes but you are surrounded. You can't run away and your friend isn't here, rest assured I will have my revenge in due time."

"Of course, you had to run to daddy first," Naya sneered. "Oh, and don't talk on your own when I'm talking to you. You didn't answer my question."

He growled and rushed her with a powerful hook. Naya stopped it with a knife hand block and drove a straight punch into his right in the centre of his chest, knocking him flying. The red one leaped at her from the side with a tornado kick that Naya leaped back to avoid then retaliated with a skipping axe kick. The red one swayed to the side and let off a hook but Naya ducked it and knocked him away as well with a spinning back kick.

Without pause she flew after him and tried for her axe kick again but he caught himself in mid-air and stopped the attack with both hands. He shoved her back and hit her with a side kick before she could recover. Naya slammed into the ground in a blast of dust and rock.

"Naya!"

Hiyori was rushing over to her side, when the dust cleared and Naya was on her feet again with a hand raised.

"Stop right there," she said. "The injured should stay out of it."

"But-" Hiyori protested.

"Just stay there," she said. "If the people meant to transport us are killed how do we get off here then?"

Hiyori didn't know how to respond to that. She really wanted to help Naya, not just because she was leading her to Frieza but because she had come to really like her despite the situation. She was so strange and unpredictable and yet so real and honest, Rikku too… she didn't want them to leave again… or die… She was torn. And what about Kin? Did Kin even know about this? Would he agree? Would he be happy? She'd already taken so much from him. Hadn't she been selfish enough?

Naya took her stance again saying, "I'm going to beat these two to a pulp if they keep pushing me like this. Fights are supposed to be easy."

Hiyori found herself crying all of a sudden. This situation was so familiar… Naya was acting tougher than she really was. Hiyori sniffed and blinked furiously, determined not to show her tears. This wasn't the time to break down. _Hey, Hiyori if you cry like that how can daddy protect you when he knows you're in pain…_

"Oi, red bastard," Naya called. "It was kind of a surprise that you could fly when moss skin over there couldn't."

The red furred man glared at her. "Because unlike him, I know what I'm doing. You're going to pay for all your crimes against my people."

Naya smiled. "I haven't committed crimes against anyone, dead people don't count after all you have to be alive to have a crime committed against you. Now if you said sins, maybe-"

The green one charged her. "SHUT UP!"

Naya didn't bother to dodge and slammed his chin with a powerful front kick, knocking him skyward. He hit the ground with a hard thud but managed to spin into a windmill and spring to his feet. The red one above said nothing in response but his eyes made it clear: He was furious. The younger guy growled, rubbing his bruised chin

"You're here for me right?" Naya said. "Then why don't we take this elsewhere and leave the stranger out of this? You wouldn't want to be responsible for an innocent's death."

The red one frowned. "This person obviously cares for you, killing her will give my people closure. We have lost many to you and you must feel the same pain. The answer is no."

Hiyori started. He was really going to kill her! He was actually going to kill her to make Naya suffer for her crimes! She should have been angry at how unfair this was but all she could worry about was how Naya would get out of it ok. Even though it was Naya's problem, Hiyori wanted to shoulder it with her. She'd been alone so long. Years with only Kin for company, Kin who would agree to anything because he felt guilty, Kin who she felt so bad for, like she was using him. Hiyori wanted more friends, she wanted people who would stick by her not because they felt guilty and she wanted Kin to have a taste of what he could have if only he looked for it instead of stubbornly sticking with her.

"I see," Naya finally said. She'd been quiet for quite some time after that statement.

And finally she smiled once more, but this time it was different. Hiyori was suddenly terrified of Naya. That smile was completely unnatural. It was too wide. Her eyes were crazed, suddenly shining with an insane intensity. She was… thrilled.

"Hiyori, I leave the small fry hidden in the landscape to you," Naya said, her voice quivering with what sounded like excitement.

Her smile widened even further. **"I'm going to give someone the thrashing of his life."**

The red one paused in surprise while the green one's expression became increasingly very worried. All of a sudden, Naya didn't look like Naya anymore. She looked like someone who thrived on violence.

That smile, was a smile… of carnage.

 ** _Rikku_**

It took a while for them to make move and once they did it was only to send someone ahead. They had been moving in the background merely tagging along with Kin and I, watching us go. I'd quickly realized that we were being corralled and seeing as no alterations were made to our course so close to the base the idea was to attack us all together at the ship. At least, that was what I figured I could be wrong.

These Veridians… I was pretty sure Naya and I had wiped most of them off the face of this planet except the few our scouters picked up but never led us to. Of course, then little green showed up and crippled me so that little mystery went on hiatus. They thought themselves hidden but I could see them, the occasional flash of a furred leg, an eye here and there, movement in the leaves above us. I considered playing along to see what they had in store for us but then I thought what if their plan was one we couldn't get out of? They'd had a long time to rest and think this through and I couldn't rely on the fact that they were weak because they wouldn't be here if they didn't think they had a chance of winning. They'd seen our power or were at least familiar with it by this point therefore there was no guarantee that we'd make it out alive if we walked into whatever they had planned. And of course there was the Chief to worry about… if he was a part of this then there was a pretty good chance we weren't going to make it. In this case, doing as the enemy wanted was a very bad idea.

I looked at Kin only to catch him staring at me no doubt wondering what was on my mind. He immediately turned red but I ignored it and said, "Kin why don't we fly above the trees for a bit? I'm getting kind of tired of having to pay attention while I'm flying you know? Plus we'd go as the crow flies, much faster don't you think?"

Kin looked confused, his long hair flying in the wind. "Well, yeah but there's a higher chance we'd miss the others the trees here being so high up and all."

I raised an eyebrow. "Next to a river that big?"

Kin looked sheepish. "Good point."

"Although, I have to ask," he continued. "Why all of a sudden? We were doing pretty well with going beneath the canopy."

I rolled my eyes and ignored the question, tilting upward. In mere seconds I burst through the canopy with Kin following close behind still on course. This guy really needed to pay more attention to what was going on around him.

I turned my gaze toward the canopy we'd just flown through, scanning for any movement as it zipped by beneath us. I noticed a few odd ruffles here and there but eventually they stopped as we covered more distance. Maybe they were tired now, having to leap up to catch a glimpse and fall down only to do it again at this speed had to be wearing them out. Maybe we could shake them now, or maybe they had another way of observing us.

I came to an abrupt stop over the canopy. Kin shot past me and then, when he noticed, brought himself to a halt. He turned around with some irritation. "Don't just stop like that! I could've crashed you know?"

"My bad," I said absently, scanning the canopy for anything out of place.

Kin sounded surprised. "Did you just apologise?"

"Say something like 'I didn't think you were the type' and I'll crush you."

Kin immediately went very quiet. The canopy was remarkably still. Except for the breeze that rustled the leaves the entire green expanse was unmoving, the only sound being the air whispering through the leaves.

"Ummm… why aren't we moving?" Kin asked.

I remained silent, thinking. If I could get them to move prematurely Kin and I could defeat them here or at least rush their plans and make them more likely to make a mistake. But how would I do that without changing our course? There was nowhere for us to go on this planet, after all we only had one ship so even if we took a different route we would still have the same destination… unless they were on a time constraint in which case which would it be? Did they need _more_ time or would us speeding up be more beneficial to them? Quickest solution was to do what they didn't expect which meant I would have to 'betray' Kin.

"Hey, Kin," I said, looking at him.

He seemed worried but he answered me. "What?"

"I'm going to kill you."

"…What?"

I rushed him with a series of kicks that he struggled to dodge. This guy wasn't strong enough yet to start fighting, I had to make sure not to push him too hard. I let loose another barrage, all the while driving Kin back.

"Rikku what is this?" Kin demanded. "Why all of a sudden?"

I kept up the attacks not giving him room to rest. Up here there was nothing to hide behind, he could only face me head on, a battle he was going to lose in his condition. Kin growled and started to kick but I stopped his leg with one foot then booted him back with a front kick. Kin stopped himself and glared at me.

"I thought we were allies!"

I attacked with a side kick. "Yeah, whatever."

Kin dodged to the side and caught my leg. I raised an eyebrow in surprise. _Didn't see that coming._

"It really means so little to you?" he demanded, dark eyes blazing. "You really can't be trusted."

My expression turned flat. _Oi, can you read the situation around you just a bit? Stop taking this so seriously… geez._

Kin started to twist my ankle but I instantly pulled my leg, shooting forward and slamming his forehead with the base of my palm. He lost concentration but he didn't let go, a testament to his tenacity. I was going to have to hit him way harder, something I didn't want to do since I didn't want to hurt him. _Quality for quantity then._

I rained blows down on him, all palm strikes but he wasn't letting go. At this rate I would have to risk an actual serious blow to the head or maybe break his nose.

"I'm not letting go Rikku," Kin said, smiling as his body quivered. "I need to live… for Hiyori's sake."

I felt like screaming at him. _Are you stupid? A moron maybe? If I wanted to kill you, you would have died with the first blow! Look at you, you're shaking! You're shaking like a leaf! Like a leaf withering to dust!_

Instead I said, "Admirable" and punched him in the shoulder of the arm holding my leg. His arm immediately went limp and I kicked him to the side with my other leg.

"If only I were at full power," Kin panted, floating limply. "Then I could take you. If this is all you've got…"

 _He can't even tell that I'm taking it easy on him. Pay attention! The hell… I've got a first class idiot here! Mayday! Mayday! Moron incoming! Ah, he's already landed._

"Rikku," he continued. "Don't do this, let me see Hiyori at least. We'll leave you and Naya alone after all, you've found a way out haven't you? It's the only reason you would turn on us isn't it?"

I blinked. "You're not very observant are you?"

"Huh?"

I blinked again. "You know what?"

I raised a hand, charging up an energy blast. "Just die."

I fired it straight through his chest.

 ** _Naya_**

Naya leaped forward, buried her fist in the green furred Veridians gut and smashed him aside with a backridge strike. The red one rushed her, letting off fast and powerful blows. Naya dodged and blocked as many as she could but she was being forced back in the process. Back toward Hiyori…

Naya could hear the sounds of combat not too far behind her and if she didn't get these two away from here, she'd never be able to really cut loose. Naya blocked an incoming straight punch and tried to kick the red guy back but he caught her leg and instantly threw her to the ground. The green one tried to take advantage with an axe kick but Naya rolled to the side and smacked him in the head with a windmill that carried her to her feet.

The ship and Hiyori were in the way. The venue had to change and quickly. Naya started to pant, glaring at her two opponents. The green guy was nothing much, he just had moves, but the red one… he was the problem. He was actually pretty skilled and had good instincts to go with it. Also his reflexes were scarily precise not to mention he always seemed to have a counter to everything. This guy was already reading her style and exploiting her weaknesses.

Naya grinned. Oh how she would savor it when she could whale on these two. First, she would have to clear them outta here. Green rushed her once more but he was easily dispatched with a round house to the head, but red took that moment to come flying at her with a butterfly kick. She dove underneath him and turned with her leg chambered for a side kick only to see red already inside her guard with an uppercut incoming. _He deliberately led with something easy to read!_

Moving on pure instinct, Naya jerked her head to the side, dodging the fatal blow only barely. Red overbalanced, surprise plastered on his face. He'd clearly thought that was the clincher, but that thought was completely eliminated when Naya shifted all the weight that had been on her standing leg down the length of her arm with a stomp that led into a truly powerful hook. Red was plastered to the ground by the force of the blow, shrapnel shooting up from the ground like bullets from the impact.

"Father!"

Naya whipped around to see green charging at her. She fired a ki blast that he easily dodged but by then he was too late to see the spinning back kick in time. She planted her foot firmly in his solar plexus, hardening energy around her foot to increase the power of the strike. Green's eyes bugged and saliva shot out of his mouth, and then he blasted off her foot like he was shot from a cannon. Naya whipped around at the sound of movement behind her and caught red's fist. She instantly took the chance to kick him in the chin, turn and hurl him after green.

There were several loud booms, thuds and cracks as they both flew into the forest. Explosions of dust and wood followed the sounds for quite some distance. Naya flew high above the clearing and surveyed the damage. She had drilled a straight line of destruction leading from the clearing to the end some seventy or so feet away. Red and green looked a lot smaller from that kind of range. Naya took the chance to look down at the clearing to see Hiyori fighting a much larger group of green and brown furred Veridians. The girl was holding her own using a graceful series of palm strikes and sweeping kicks. None of the Veridians were managing to touch her, so skillfully did she direct them with her strikes that they always got in each other's way.

Naya raised an eyebrow. _Hmm, she's pretty good._

Hiyori would be able to take care of herself. Naya looked back at the two she'd sent flying to see them already getting to their feet. She flew over the large distance in mere seconds and landed opposite them. Red eyed her warily while green was almost literally fuming. There was a large skill gap between those two and it was very obvious to Naya; while one was reevaluating the threat she posed the other was simply getting mad.

"You're stronger than your looks would have me believe it seems," the red one said.

"I get that a lot."

"I am Sanza," he said and gestured to his smaller, green furred partner. "And this is my son Shadah."

"Hn."

"I must admit I have a few questions," Sanza said his expression deceptively calm, but Naya could see his fists were balled up and shaking.

"And you assume I'll answer them," she said pointedly.

"Answer or not the end of this fight will be the same," Sanza responded, red eyes glowing dangerously.

His reaction made Naya smile. "Clearly, my little display earlier didn't scare you."

"That was just a bluff," Sanza said. "You were wounded before the fight began and you wanted to scare us to make us make mistakes."

At this point, Naya started to laugh. "You're a funny guy. You shouldn't over analyze everything you see."

Shadah growled while Sanza remained calm. "Are you implying that you could handle us both?" Sanza said, starting to grit his teeth.

His mask was breaking and his irritation was starting to leak through. While indeed beneficial, Naya didn't care about that.

She stared at him with a straight face, body tense.

"You see," she said with a smirk. "All the while I've been fighting you, I've been thinking and planning my attacks."

"I fail to see how that makes you better off," Sanza said flatly.

"True," she admitted grudgingly. "I suppose it sounds better if I said I _hadn't_ been thinking my attacks through, but I'm sure you've noticed that my style is pretty weak against close combat seeing as all you two have done is try to get within my guard from the start."

Shadah looked surprised that she had noticed while Sanza simply stared, no doubt reassessing her once again. He was a clever one, observant and skilled and most definitely strong

"That's because this style I use is all about strikes," Naya continued. "Or more specifically kicks and punches but mostly kicks. There are no holds, there are few elbow and knee strikes leaving me practically defenseless against wrestlers and close combatants. That's what you were going on right?"

She spread her hands. "I used to be a wrestler, and before I ever learned any form of combat I was a street fighter and a very good one at that. Do you know what that means?"

Sanza eyes widened ever so slightly. "I don't know what a street fighter is but I get the gist of it. You… you have powerful instincts don't you?"

Shadah looked confused. "Father?"

"Thinking slows down your natural reactions to allow for thought," Sanza explained. "The more you think your actions through the less you listen to your instincts, which increases the amount of time it takes you to come up with and execute an attack. This is usually better because instincts can be unreliable, built solely on muscle memory and perceived threats… But if you have good instincts, adaptable instincts, natural responses capable of dealing with any threat without any thought process on your part your offensive capabilities will be nigh impossible to deal with for any unprepared opponent. If she was capable of winning fights with zero training, it means that she was able to defeat those opponents on instinct and raw fighting ability alone."

Shadah's face changed to one of surprise once more. "What…?"

Why did she tell them that? It was simple really. She wanted them to know that they had made her serious and that she was no longer going to hold back in any way. Naya loved to fight but Rikku had saved her from a life of violence. He didn't speak to her, he never did because he hated her then, rather she learned by watching him. Indeed, violence never solved anything and only served to make your problems worse or create entirely new ones. Seeing Rikku constantly fighting, constantly alone, solving all his problems entirely on his own and refusing to rely on others had helped her see just the kind of path she was on…

Oh, he had been the loneliest person she'd ever come across with absolutely no one he considered a friend in any way. Her love of fighting was no less diminished but his mistakes taught her that conflict should only ever be a last resort, true conflict where only one of you was getting up again. If one was constantly seeking out combat all you would ever do is push people away, both those you hate and those you like. Fighting against Rikku and seeing all this… all came together to teach her this lesson but she was going to throw it all aside and crush these two without mercy… because this time she had reason to fight. Rikku, Vegeta, Nappa and now Kin and Hiyori… the Saiyans could not afford to be wiped out. And more personally… she didn't want to leave Rikku all alone again.

"With my training and natural talent I've come a long way," Naya said, leaning forward her blue aura bursting to life around her. "People like you aren't going to beat me."

Sanza and Shadah both settled into fighting positions…

But by then she was already in their faces.

 ** _Hiyori_**

Being surrounded by enemies didn't give much time to think. Hiyori had to stay constantly on the move, dealing out damage and dodging between enemies to make them hit each other all the while circling to make sure she could see from all sides. She couldn't afford to take too much damage since she was still recovering and she couldn't keep this up for too long either. Her body was tiring out a lot quicker because of her barely healing injuries, any clean shot would take her out. Not to mention flying away would leave the ship open to destruction to cut off any chance they would have of leaving the planet, assuming these guys knew what the ship was. It was a risk she couldn't afford to take.

Hiyori did an aerial over two kicks aimed at her ribs and kicked both owners aside as she did so. Upon landing she whirled to avoid a side kick, hooked it with her hand, smashed the attacker's knee and threw them into the others.

She came to a stop as they surrounded her once again some distance from the ship, closer to the tree line where Naya had sent those two guys flying. She needed backup and quickly. Rikku and Kin should have been back ages ago, they should have been here to help. Or maybe they were also attacked? One thing was for definite, if they didn't show up soon Hiyori would wear down and these locals would kill her.

Hiyori froze. _Huh? Is it just me or are they not doing anything?_

Hiyori looked around to see that they had surrounded her but were making no moves to defeat her. Hiyori stared at them, unsure what to do. She looked around at each of them trying to figure out what they were doing and then she looked up to see five of them in the treetops with their hands upraised.

Hiyori's eyes widened in fear as they fell upon the large ball of golden energy hanging above her. The large ball of golden energy that was rapidly closing the gap between it and her. The large ball of golden energy that was mere feet away.

 _The large ball of energy that was going to kill her_.

* * *

 **AN: How was it people? Speak to me. With your reviews of course. With this I wonder what I'm going to do next... Hmmm, so many options...**


	7. Chapter 6

**So first of all I would like to apologise for my absence. Getting my laptop to me was incredibly difficult and I appreciate the efforts of everyone involved. I would not have it without them. Love my family. Anyway, I decided to lengthen this one a bit more but I didn't really know how you guys would respond to longer chapters so I decided to keep this at the usual length. I did however try to make it interesting as a kind of apology for being away so long. So here you go... chapter 6.**

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

 _A few miles away_

"Did you hear that?"

Jergenn and Nath were standing near a massive waterfall that led down into a river big enough to be an ocean. The two were dressed in the standard issue Frieza Force outfit consisting of black body suits, white boots, gloves and white body armour. Both were lower class soldiers with power levels of 3000 and 2500 respectively, not much higher than the average power level of 2000 within the Frieza Force. Jergenn was a reptilian looking alien with green scales and sharp teeth while Nath was a purple smooth skinned humanoid with wavy hair.

"That was an explosion just now," Nath said, his face twisted up in worry. He glanced at Jergenn who didn't seem particularly bothered. Jergenn had always held a strong dislike for Naya and Rikku and when Frieza had called them up and told them they were to go see if those Saiyans were dead Jergenn had been the happiest Nath had seen him. Nath wasn't quite so driven after the thrashing Rikku had given him the one time he was "unkind" to Naya but Jergenn had it out for all the Saiyans even the Prince Vegeta who was on an entirely different level from them.

Both looked toward the little glow they could see quite some distance away and noted the small wisps of smoke trailing up from said speck of light.

"It's really far away too," Jergenn added, seemingly peeved by this. Then he smiled in the most satisfied way a reptile could with a snout like a croc.

Nath tried not to let his discomfort show but he knew he wouldn't be backing Jergenn up. One thrashing was quite enough thank you… well that was if those two were alive anyway. He knew Jergenn was looking forward to seeing Rikku die, whether by his own hands or not.

Nath eyed the spot where the light had appeared noting that now there was only smoke. _Being able to see it from this distance… I pity whoever got hit by that._

"You aren't planning to interfere are you?"

Nath whipped around to see a figure dressed in a cloak standing behind him and Jergenn who had also turned around.

"Who are you?" the reptilian soldier demanded.

Nath took the chance to scan the enemy and frowned when the scouter gave him zero as a reading. Even bugs gave a number on this thing, even if the number was in .001's…. This guy on the other hand gave zero… That was not normal.

"Jergenn be careful," Nath warned, taking up a rather flowery looking stance.

Jergenn snorted saying, "This guy isn't worth worrying about. We'll take him out quick and go deal with those two monkeys."

The figure did not move, its face hidden by its hood. "It seems Frieza doesn't know how to give someone their due respect."

Jergenn immediately snapped. "Address Lord Frieza with respect, trash!" he growled, preparing to attack. "I'll make sure this is the last time you slight his name!"

"I see no reason to," came the response. "He did a good job of slighting it by himself."

"Shut up! Before I shut you up!" Jergenn roared.

Nath detected a hint of amusement from the figure and was immediately very worried. What if this guy and Frieza were equals or perhaps this one was even superior…? If that was the case this would be Jergenn's last mistake.

"Wait Jergenn, let's think about this," Nath said.

Jergenn was in no mood to listen. "I don't care Nath, he needs to be silenced."

The figure lifted a hand covered by the cloak. "Well, I can probably get away with just a smidge."

Angered by the apparent disregard the stranger held for both Frieza and himself Jergenn charged with a roar….

Straight into a bright white light.

 _ **Hiyori**_

Hiyori's eyes widened in fear as the sphere of fierce golden energy drew closer. Her knees shook, making any sort of movement impossible for her. She was going to die… was this how she was going to die? Oh god she was going to die! She closed her eyes as the energy descended…

"Wow, I'm impressed. I didn't know you could do something like this you know? Well I suppose I didn't give you much of a chance to try anything now did I?"

That was Rikku's voice! Hiyori's eyes snapped open to see the curly haired Saiyan soldier floating above the golden energy, one hand gripping it tightly and preventing it from moving any further. He glanced at her with what seemed like mild disappointment and said, "Why didn't you just dodge?"

Hiyori was so stunned it took her a while to register what he just said, but when she did she noticed all the Veridians surrounding her quaking in fear. Then she remembered that she had been surrounded anyway.

"I was surrounded," she answered, realizing afterward how strange it seemed. Like she was offering excuses to her teacher for being late to class.

Rikku didn't seem to notice or care and simply said, "You might want to move."

Immediately, the Veridians moved to intercept no doubt in an effort use her as hostage of some sort but in close combat they were already inferior to the short Saiyan girl. Scared as they were, it was no contest. Hiyori blurred into motion, palm thrusts and sweeping kicks knocking her assailants flying and then zoomed upwards, joining Rikku up in the air.

"Waste of energy," Rikku snorted watching the Veridians scramble. "You could have just used one blow for all of them."

Hiyori found herself blushing in embarrassment. What amazed her was that she didn't dislike it… she would have to ask Naya about this later if they made it through alive. She glanced at Rikku out of the corner of her eye. Somehow that didn't feel like a problem anymore.

Rikku heaved the ball of golden energy up and then hurled it down at the ground. The resulting explosion blew aside all the trees and vegetation, chewing up the rock hidden beneath meters upon meters of dirt. The blowback tore through Hiyori, the wind produced ripping at her hair and tearing at her skin. When it finally died down there was a massive crater leaking unbelievable amounts of smoke and dust. All the Veridians caught in explosion were probably ash in the wind now. Hiyori noticed a few who had tried to run unconscious all around the massive hole in the ground. The ones who got really far away were the dead ones though.

Rikku surveyed the damage and said, "Seems the closest ones to the blast got thrown."

Hiyori blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

"Never mind," Rikku said. "What's important is they're all dead one way or another. We can forget about the unconscious ones for now, just make sure you keep in mind the fact that they're still alive."

Hiyori nodded. "Yes, I will."

 _Was he this commanding before? He's totally scary. I don't even think I can talk to him right now._

An explosion rang out and Hiyori turned toward the sound. From upriver she could see a wide column of white light flying up into the heavens.

"What is that?" she said, getting worried. Another thought occurred to her. "Is Kin over there?!"

"No and stop yelling," Rikku responded.

"Where is he?"

"Taking care of a few party crashers is all."

Hiyori was immediately worried and slightly furious. She suspected betrayal. Rikku being very observant did not fail to notice this and he sighed.

Rikku glanced at her then folded his arms and sighed again. "Seriously, the both of you need to dial it down a few notches. And here I thought you were the level headed one."

"We should keep an eye out for any threats from that direction," Rikku said. "Being able to see it from this distance… I pity whoever got hit by that."

"As for your brother," he continued. "Don't worry about him. He's perfectly fine…"

 _ **Kin**_

Kin's first thought once he hit the ground was, _I'm an idiot._

He lay there with his eyes still closed as warmth flooded his body, filling him with strength. _I should have paid more attention. I can't believe I didn't see any of this…_

Two furry men, were standing over him while several had formed a circle around him and them. They were clearly supposed to be examining him and had stopped when they realized his eyes were open. It was now that Kin could see Rikku's plan more clearly. He had realized that any whisper or tell might give them away cause they weren't close and knew nothing about each other that could help give clues… well useful ones anyway. So Rikku decided to force him to stay behind and deal with the enemy by attacking him and then handing him a good doze of energy to fight with. That guy was pretty crazy, wouldn't it have been better to tell him something somehow or attack them together, or maybe he was watching and he figured this would show Kin's strength or perhaps he saw reason to rush ahead? Kin frowned at the thought. In that case he would have to make this quick.

Kin threw himself to his feet, and shook himself flexing some of his muscles to shake off the beating from earlier. The two furry men moved back and stared at him in suspicion.

"Are you enemies with the brown skinned one from just now?" one asked him.

Kin shrugged. "You know, I'm not entirely sure myself at this point."

The two appeared to give this some thought, the smaller one exchanging heated whispers with the bigger one who was clearly in charge. Kin's mind was elsewhere though. Judging from how Rikku placed him here and his overall demeanour so far the younger Saiyan had come to realize that his senior was a lot smarter and thoughtful than he seemed to be when he made a decision. In that case, he would go with it for now since he didn't have much of a choice. After this though, if Rikku was indeed betraying him he would defeat him without hestitation.

"Then I suppose an alliance is in order," the other, bigger one said. "What say you to that?"

"I refuse," Kin said flatly. "Sorry, I have somewhere to be can we make this fast? Everybody come at me at once."

All the furry men, made various movements of surprise clearly not expecting to be turned down. The two leaders seemed mildly surprised at first but their expressions quickly hardened.

"Are you sure this is what you want boy?" the bigger one said. "We out number you."

"Just come! I have a sister to protect!" Kin glared at them. " **Now!** "

And with that the furry men charged. It was disorderly. Their leaders hadn't given the order either, it was a mad rush spurred on for no identifiable reason. Perhaps, it was because all of a sudden Kin's black eyes looked _a lot_ darker. Perhaps… it could have been one of the giant leaves of the planets great trees that cast such a dark shadow over that particular spot. It could have been anything… but it was the thought that maybe, just maybe… they were up against more than they could handle.

The initial charge had 15 warriors. After taking a single step, all were reduced to ash…

 _ **Naya**_

Sanza rushed forward with a series of jabs and crosses trying to pin Naya down but she wasn't giving him any ground so fast was her footwork she was dancing all around him landing shots in his openings with every blow he missed. And her shots were heavy, she knew that much. She was holding back nothing and she could feel his ribs creak with every body blow.

Sanza faked a hook, spun with it and struck with a reverse elbow but Naya had simply slammed her foot into his exposed body when he faked the hook. Sanza went flying and his son immediately popped up in his place trying to land a hit. He rose up with a powerful uppercut to which Naya retaliated by moving back and shooting a front kick into the centre of his chest. Shadah doubled over and Naya immediately followed up with a round house to his temple that sent him drilling another trough in the ground.

Sanza rushed her once again having snuck up so he could get into her guard, but Naya had heard him. At this point she was thinking nothing, planning nothing, her body was guided by sheer instinct and ability. This was her at her strongest! Sanza let loose quick and powerful punches and elbows, determined not to give her space to strike. Naya dodged every strike, and caught the follow up fist he'd been waiting to release. A shockwave flew out from the point of impact, ruffling her clothes and her hair. Undisturbed by the strength of the blow, Naya roared and retaliated with a heavy front kick between his ribs and while Sanza was doubled over she drove a spinning back kick right into his jaw. With a cry of pain Sanza flew back and crashed into the ground hard enough to kick up rock.

Sanza tried to rise and only to crumple to his knees with a groan. "Father!" Shadah cried. The younger Veridian glared at Naya and rushed at her but she was already on the offensive. Before Shadah could take a step Naya was smashing her foot into his jaw with a flying kick. The younger Veridian got blown into the forest hard enough to leave a shockwave. Naya turned on landing and went after Sanza, with a snarl. Sanza stood up in time to block her punch, but Naya threw his hand aside and fired off an uppercut. Sanza caught it with his other hand only for Naya to plant her knee firmly between his ribs. The Veridian, spat up blood and immediately got blasted through a tree from the force of the blow.

Naya stomped the ground and took off at a run so powerful it kicked up a large chunk of rock. In an instant she was above the still flying Sanza, then she spun and slammed him into the ground with an axe kick. Rock blasted up from the point of impact, and dust shrouded Sanza from sight. Naya felt pressure resisting her leg and leaped up to drop another axe kick when a blur on the left rushed in. She was punched incredibly hard, the displaced air from the blow wearing away the bark of Veridia's massive trees and clearing the dirt covering Sanza, revealing that the chief had indeed blocked the first kick.

Shadah grinned in satisfaction in his second form, his eyes glowing green and his darker fur rippling over his now massive body. Then he frowned when he realized that Naya was holding his fist in her smoking hand. She glared at him more than a little pissed off now. Shadah was hanging in her grip at this point, since he was unable to fly. Naya looked down at him.

"What? How could you take a dead on charge from me when your friend couldn't?' Shadah demanded, satisfaction turned to fear. "Are you a monster? What are you?"

Her stare turned to a glare. "You're starting to annoy me."

Sanza leaped up and tried to free his son with a chop. Naya slapped the attack aside and slammed her wrist into his jaw with the same hand. Sanza floated backwards, clutching his jaw. He was panting, and blood was leaking from both sides of his mouth.

"Take another one of those and it's my win," Naya said flatly.

"How… can this… be?" Sanza managed. "I sense… no rise… in your energy…"

"How am I overpowering you?" Naya said. "That's the question you want to ask? I told you, I'm serious right now."

Naya let Shadah drop to the ground and the powered up Veridian made no move to attack. The thing was that, just as Rikku had speed boosting techniques Naya had boosting techniques of her own. Her technique was Hado, where she would harden the energy she used for massive destructive power. It had taken ages of practice and she'd only really thought of it once she saw Vegeta get hit with a sword only for the sword to snap. That had made her think that maybe energy had hardening properties as well and she'd worked as hard as she could until she could harden her energy. Thankfully, she was not wrong so many times she'd felt like giving up… With this technique she was capable of a lot more destructive power, which she was already notorious in the Saiyan army for having. Just now she hadn't caught Shadah's fist rather she had used a full power palm strike with Hado to equal the power of the blow to nullify it and _then_ catch his hand by closing her grip.

 _But I can't do that too often,_ she thought with a glance at her hand. There was a massive bruise spread across her entire palm from when Shadah struck her. Shadah was a pain. Whenever she could finish things with the chief he got in the way and now, she'd probably have to give up an arm for a full power Hado strike to take him out with such a large power gap between them. Then she'd be handicapped against the chief who was a far better warrior and she wasn't sure she could take him one handed. Chances were he had a power up just like his son, no way he would be chief otherwise.

 _This looks bad. I should have killed Shadah first._

At this point, Sanza chuckled. Naya looked up back at him expression serious. Something was going in this guy's favour and she'd clearly missed what it was. He didn't seem like the type to rush her in the hopes of winning and it seemed that assumption was correct. He was nothing like his son as he said before.

"Well done, Shadah," Sanza said. "Now you should be strong enough to buy me time."

"I see, you want to transform," Naya said. "Why didn't you do that before you came here? Are you guys idiots or something?"

Shadah shot up from below. Naya stepped off to the side as the Veridian zoomed past and crashed back down to the ground.

"Stop looking down on us!" Shadah roared, the air from his outburst blowing violently through the trees.

Undisturbed by the noise and wind, Naya smirked. "And why the hell not? I'm enjoying the view."

Shadah growled. "I'll kill you for that."

Naya gave him a twisted smile. **"Bring it on."**

Before Shadah could do anything, Sanza broke in. "Shadah, do not forget what we aim for!"

Naya turned to look at him, wondering what he was planning. Surely transforming was the plan?

Sanza said, "In all honesty I didn't expect you to be this much of a threat so I thought not to stress myself."

Naya blinked. "So you've been holding back then."

Sanza smiled. "Oh you have no idea woman. Once I'm ready, I'm going to destroy you and your partner."

Naya frowned. It was indeed a transformation. Things did not look very good right now… A transformation was not going to be good for her. She would have to get past Shadah somehow and stop Sanza.

Naya noticed Shadah tensing and took up her fighting stance, hands fisted and raised, legs wide. _Alright, here we go!_

Shadah leaped up at her with an uppercut. Naya leaned back and let him fly up before spinning and shooting a kick straight up into the small of his back when he came back down. Shadah, rolled off her leg in a fit of rage and lashed out with a punch so powerful Naya could see the air displacing around it as it came. She managed to lift one arm to block it and got blown backwards. Naya cried out as she was smashed through three trees in a row, slamming into a fourth hard enough to stick to it.

Naya, struggled and finally jerked herself free, panting for a bit and then wincing when her left arm gave a twinge. _Every second counts, I can't afford to let the chief transform!_

She ignored how disturbingly light her arm felt all of a sudden and took her stance, all senses on alert. Then Shadah came blasting out of the surrounding trees, and leaped at her once more. Naya flew higher to dodge the blow, and Shadah flew off into the tree smashing a crater in it. He rebounded after her and tried to knock her down with a flip kick. Naya immediately flipped back and dove to the ground so fast she cracked it and the transformed Veridian flew overhead to land some distance away. Naya jumped up and ran toward him and lashed out with a flying kick just as Shadah himself landed. He immediately responded by punching her kick. Naya encased her leg in energy and hardened it in an effort to overpower him. Little by little Shadah's hand moved back, but then he roared and pushed forward with all his might shoving _her_ back but before she could be thrown Naya immediately flipped up and dropped an axe kick. By then, Shadah was suddenly much too close.

Naya's eyes widened in surprise. _How?!_

Shadah grinned and slammed his fist into the side of her face hard enough to knock her flying into yet another tree. Her head swimming, Naya couldn't even see it when Shadah jumped after her and slammed his knee into her gut. She heaved, choking as her insides threatened to come out her mouth. She fell to the ground and lay there, her entire body aching and her left arm starting to become stiff. She coughed, her eyes watering and her vision starting to blend into one giant swaying mess.

She was barely able to raise her head, only able to rest her chin in the dirt but that was enough for her… Enough for her to see the dark splotch that was Shadah coming ever closer…

 _ **Rikku**_

Walking through the forest I had to be careful not to step over anything that could trip me. There was so much destruction like a wild animal had finally lost all sense and gone berserk. The gigantic trees of this planet had scrapes, craters and massive holes in them and the hard ground looked like it had been turned to mash. Walking over the rocks was practically an art, I had to pick where I stepped. But flying was out of the question, I didn't want him to run away.

I paused when Hiyori grabbed my shoulder and said , "what?"

I was in no mood for pointless observations, and I was extremely sure she was about to make one.

"I think we should head toward the explosions," she said. "Cause last I saw Naya was fighting two guys and I'm not sure how much she can take-"

"Tell me Hiyori, would you say that number of explosions accounts for three people?"

Hiyori blinked.

I sighed. Clearly an explanation was in order.

"Listen, before there was a lot of destruction often over multiple areas sometimes at the same time meaning at least two people were getting thrown around by someone," I said looking at her to make sure she was following. She was nodding so I took that as a good sign and continued talking. "It doesn't matter which is which because that accounts for our three fighters."

I turned around and kept walking, continuing to add. "Now on the other hand, there are no more simultaneous acts of destruction, rather we have one at a time. Multiple ones tend to be in the form of a straight line or some other predictable pattern and what does that tell you?"

Hiyori seemed to struggle with my way of thinking as she walked behind me so I just handed it to her. "It means it's down to 2 fighters now."

"That means the third was beaten right?" Hiyori asked. "It means Naya's winning."

"Not necessarily," I answered, stepping over a really nasty looking piece of rock. "It could mean that yes, but it could also mean the third fighter ran away or is doing something we shouldn't be letting him do."

"I see," Hiyori said. "But what if Naya's the one losing?"

"If she could handle both of them she can handle one of them," I said. "So long as she stays focused."

"What if she was losing by an even larger margin than that?" Hiyori asked, "Aren't you worried?"

"If she was losing she has one less fighter to fight," I said. "Plus I fought one of those guys, if I could beat him she definitely can."

Hiyori seemed stuck on this for a bit, and this really sickening expression came across her face. _Ugh, now she's going to be all sentimental on me about how I'm actually nicer than I seem or something._

We walked for a few more minutes, until we came across a red furred Veridian sitting on a branch nursing his wounds. He was resting quite comfortably, eyes closed his breathing even… but he wasn't asleep. Even as I flew up the massive branch, he cracked one eye open and calmly watched me land opposite him. Hiyori landed next to me her expression one of curiosity, curiosity aimed at me more than anything else.

I ignored it and instead glared at the red furred Veridian.

He was undisturbed and didn't even bother to move. Instead he said, "I didn't think you would get here so fast."

"You didn't honestly think your little squad could take me out did you?" I said. "I may not be as strong as Naya, but don't look down on me."

I smiled politely. "It pisses me off."

He stood up finally taking his time to do so. Looking at him I could see it…

"You're trying to buy time aren't you," I pointed out. "You're tired."

He smiled. "A good observation. Yes indeed I'm tired, I was tired long before I came out here to kill you."

"Is that why you ran away from my partner?" I taunted, deliberately trying to piss him off.

He seemed amused by that and laughed. "On the contrary, I was no longer needed. Shadah was handling it well enough without me."

I blinked in surprise. _That dumbass…?_

"You seem surprised," the Veridian said. "Well you did fight him so I suppose you have a more accurate judgement on who should win. However…"

He seemed to savour the last part, knowing the information was important to me which served to piss me off further.

I gave another polite smile. "You know, if you don't speak up I could always settle for your life instead."

Hiyori seemed stunned by my words but I barely noticed it. This guy needed to be put in his place.

He smiled at me, red eyes shining. "What do you say would be the weakness of someone who relies on instinct to fight effectively?"

 _No way… this guy…._

Hiyori noticed the look on my face and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Thinking," I said. "Someone's who's not used to thinking in a fight usually can't think fast enough to keep up when they _have_ to think especially with all the action going on. Usually, sheer ability and reflex would cover that for them. Natural instinct would guide their strikes to the right spot while training and muscle memory would cover technique. Naya fights like that and she's _good at_ it. Take that away…"

He smiled. "You're no slouch yourself, are you-?"

"How?" I demanded.

He stopped smiling. "You're going to have to beat me to find out."

I snarled. "Fine by me!"

"Wait-"

I didn't hear the rest of Hiyori's sentence because my foot was already planted firmly against the enemy's raised arm. Had he been a second slower that would have been his face. I flew back and he rushed forward to take advantage but I spun low to the ground and slammed my foot into his chin from below. He flipped backward with the blow, minimizing damage and landed on his feet in a stance.

I took mine as well and scanned him over for openings. His eyes roved all over as he did the same. We both stood there for a second and then I lunged forward. He tried to meet me with a knee to the head but I stopped short and let off a spinning hook, he blocked it by bringing up his other leg and landed on me with his fist raised. Before he could bring it down I shot my palm straight at his chin with a shout and blew him off me.

He stumbled upon landing, and shook his head fiercely. I frowned as I got back up, it seemed he had already taken damage to his chin and jawline most likely Naya's work. She was the type to maximize damage after all. Hiyori was still some distance behind me, watching the fight with some interest and what looked vaguely like worry. Which reminded me, there were unused resources right there.

"Hiyori," I said. "Go check on Naya for me."

She nodded once and zoomed off.

"I won't let you!" the Veridian jumped after her but I zipped in front of him and elbowed him across the face as I blazed past.

His neck twisted unnaturally and he was blown off the branch entirely falling straight down to the ground below. I caught myself in the air and just floated there, alert. I didn't follow him, unlike Naya I couldn't keep up constant exertion for long periods of time. The longest I could fight offensively without getting tired was slightly over three minutes if I paced myself right. I didn't have the energy to waste chasing this guy around.

There was a loud whizzing sound from behind and I turned in time to dodge the red Veridian's elbow, I immediately followed up with a knee to bend him over but he stopped that with his other hand and then shot his fist at my face. I leaned to the side and threw my arm around the punch making sure to clock him with my elbow. He wobbled backwards for a few feet, clearly shaken. While he was disoriented and I blasted him into the tree trunk with a side kick and then calmly lowered my foot.

 _That's it Rikku… don't rush… don't lose your cool…pace yourself…_

I landed back on the branch as the Veridian jerked himself free of the trunk and dropped onto the same branch. He sat there for a bit, shaking his head. The damage from Naya was taking a toll it seemed… most humanoid beings with their brains in their heads had that weakness, that a good blow to the chin will shut down the brain or a hard one to the side of the jaw as well. Even a weak blow to the chin could paralyze whether one remained conscious or not and this guy had clearly taken a good number of those.

I snorted. If all went well, this fight was mine…

 _Frieza's Spaceship, Command centre_

Zarbon knelt before Frieza, his green haired head bowed as he delivered his report. The tyrant was facing the floor to ceiling window of his ship with his back to his subordinate.

Frieza frowned. "So what you're saying, Zarbon, is that the two soldiers I sent to annihilate those filthy monkeys have been killed is that correct?"

"Indeed, Lord Frieza, the report came in a few minutes ago," Zarbon confirmed. "The sensors were utterly destroyed along with their bodies so no more information can be gathered. In addition, the Saiyans have long since lost contact with base command, as of over a month ago or so."

A month… that was about when that Vegeta had gone missing all of a sudden. Frieza was well aware of the Saiyan Prince's pride and knew he was planning to kill him even though clearly he was nowhere near powerful enough to do so. The thought brought a smirk to the space tyrant's face. The Prince was acting cute it seemed… or was there more to it? His scouter communication and monitoring system was turned off so it was unclear what had happened or what he was doing. Could he have perhaps found a way?

"Actually, Lord Frieza I have another report," Zarbon offered.

Frieza raised his head distracted from his thoughts. "Speak, Zarbon. Out with it."

"There was a lead as to the whereabouts of the Dragon Balls we previously heard of through Raditz scouter," the blue skinned man said. "We thought they were just a legend but we found out through the scouter of General Nappa they are indeed real. They are tied to the Namekians, although that part took a little bit of digging… They were calling them demons over there so it was a bit of work to figure out."

Frieza grinned. "So those things _are_ real… how beneficial. This could be the answer to my problems . Good work Zarbon. Ignore the monkeys and give the order to move to Namek, we're going to find some Dragon Balls.

With the dragon balls no one would get in his way, not Majin Buu, not Beerus and not _him._ It was time to be rid of those insufferable people once and for all. As for Vegeta and his Circus Monkeys, they could die for all he cared. They were no longer worth keeping tabs on. He had to get to Namek as soon as he possibly could.

Zarbon bowed. "At once, Lord Frieza."

 _Frieza Outpost 244, Training Room_

Seph stared at his new record and felt greatly pleased by it despite it being only an increase of .2 seconds. He knew if Rikku were here he would snort and say it wasn't good enough. The thought made him frown, that guy was _never_ satisfied. He was such an asshole.

 _Why do I even talk to him anyway?_ He wondered.

Then he remembered, _Oh yeah cause he's the only one who actually talks to me about things that matter._

Seph let the smile return. Rikku was his friend, asshole though he was, and that was a lot more than most were willing to give someone who couldn't actively use his energy, especially since this was the _Frieza Force_. No one entertained weakness in any form and inability to use energy was a _severe_ one according to Rikku. Personally, Seph didn't see the point. (He could already hear Rikku asking "The point of _what_?)

Seph was an alien, but no one knew exactly _what_ he was supposed to be. He was of moderate height, and a fairly muscular build most of which was in his arms and upperbody. His legs weren't as muscular but still quite fine. His face was like the Saiyans, a nose, a mouth, eye brows the works. The main difference was that his skin tone was very nearly black all through for which Rikku never gave any slack…

Seph smiled. _Guy is such an asshole._

Seph's hair was black and short and didn't curl at all. It was just there on his head and he liked it that way. (AN: If you're having trouble picturing him, just imagine a human with almost black skin and short, coarse black hair.)

His eyes were a _very_ dark brown, nearly black. The dominance of black in his features made him fancy himself a shadow at times but then Rikku would callously point out that he was too bulky to be a very good shadow and the idea would die only to rise again later to be put down again.

Seph was wearing a black body suit, white gloves and boots and the standard white armor vest. Unlike Rikku and Naya who were all about style and technique and all that fancy stuff and needed the right _gear_ and crap, Seph was a simple guy who used his standard issue armour for everything. He simply threw himself at the enemy and prayed his skills could carry him through, something Rikku kept telling him was very retarded. Guy was probably right seeing as Seph had never actually beat him even though Rikku deliberately ignored his honestly very obvious weakness because he wanted to make things fair or some crap like that. Sometimes he didn't even use his hands and Seph was _stronger_ than him. Well physically anyway. It was honestly quite frustrating.

And those _kicks!_ Geez! That bastard was just way too fast. And for all their speed you'd think they'd hit you like a love tap and then they hit you and you realized too late that they _hurt!_ Whenever Seph saw Rikku raise a leg he shied away pretty much on instinct now, especially that tornado kick the bronze skinned Saiyan liked to finish with. You could see the guy chamber the kick, but you never saw the actual kick. Yeesh.

Annoying though he was Seph was bored without him here. He'd heard he'd gone out on a mission as soon as he came back from one of his own and no one knew where exactly he went or what he was supposed to do. Direct from Frieza like all orders the Saiyan army leftovers received, so no one but Frieza and his generals would know. That meant Seph couldn't do squat about it.

He gazed at the timer next to him on the floor, staring at his record one last time before picking up the stop watch and standing up. His body ached in response after all the training he put it through, he'd been working on his core lately and honestly it was _hard_. Nothing had ever stressed him out like this. He could already hear the grief he would be getting from a certain Saiyan about being a wuss.

" _All soldiers, report to the docking bay at once."_

Seph was surprised by this. He'd never heard an announcement calling for all soldiers in years. This was the Frieza Force, large forces only ever consisted of cannon fodder. The ones who were actual soldiers were usually more than enough in teams of three to five, sometimes one in the case of the Generals Zarbon and Dodoria. He wondered what exactly was happening.

He hustled to the docking bay passing by several soldiers on his way. All were moving towards the docking bay at varying speeds, betraying the difference in diligence, power and discipline among the soldiers with those who had the most dominant of these attributes at the front. All this was completely missed by Seph who was a slouch no matter how much of each he possessed and thus was somewhere in the middle. Not that he was observant to begin with.

Once in the docking bay, Seph found himself surrounded by other mid class soldiers, all swarming into position while making room for the high class soldiers to form up ahead and of course completely ignoring the lower class soldiers who were treated pretty much like scum. As people, got into positions Seph grabbed one of the lower class soldiers getting jostled around. The purple faced alien immediately turned blue once he saw exactly whose grasp he was in which pleased Seph. (Even though it was because he was middle class and not because the soldier had actually heard of him.)

"Oi," Seph said pointedly. "Have you seen any of the Saiyans around?"

The poor soldier shook his head no and Seph let him go. The alien immediately scrambled to join his low class colleagues who had now formed up into some form of order. Seph, due to his little delay, was at the back of the middle class soldiers. High class soldiers were ahead with the elite who were ahead of _them_. Cannon fodder class was way at the back.

Now that everyone was orderly, Zithis the captain of Frieza Outpost 244 floated into the air above them all. He was a fearsome elite said to be easily more powerful than even Captain Ginyu of the Ginyu Force. He looked like a Saiyan in that he had a normal chin, nose mouth and body shape. He was muscular but not in an excessive way and you could sense power in his movements. He had five fingers to each hand, and by his own words five toes to each foot but that was where similarities ended. The captain was tall and his skin was a devilish red shade. Additionally, he had flaming red hair that ran down to the back of his knees in a spiky mess.

His body armor despite offers from the armourers was very simple. A black body suit, and a white vest , and white gloves. Infact the only difference between his and Seph's armour was the captain symbol on his armoured vest. Zithis was a simple captain who wanted results, if he wasn't so dangerous and well known in the force it would be easy to miss the fact that he was one of the Force's most dangerous soldiers.

Zithis simply floated in the air and stared at his soldiers. There was absolute silence, so overwhelming was his presence. Seph could literally feel a faint pressure weighing him down whenever the captain's gaze passed over him.

"I summoned you to the bay for one reason," Zithis began, his red pupils burning with some unidentifiable look, whether due to emotion or determination or plain force of presence Seph wasn't sure.

All the soldiers shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, Seph included. The guy was just so intense at times.

"Frieza wants us to move to Planet Namek immediately," Zithis continued. "Reasons were not specified, however this is the Frieza Force and we do what we're told. For this reason, we are all here."

Zithis gaze sharpened. "There will be no collecting of belongings or weapons or armours. We leave now. No interruptions, no delays, no going back to retrieve items. We move right from this docking bay."

Seph raised a hand, completely oblivious to the glares he was getting for his insolence.

Zithis nodded, easily picking out his white gloved hand. "Speak."

"What about the Saiyan Army?" Seph asked. "They're all among our most powerful soldiers here."

Zithis frowned. "That is not your concern, _middle class_. If you are looking for strong backs to hide behind you are in the wrong place."

Seph frowned but put his hand back down. He did not need another tongue lashing subtle though it was.

"I will take no questions. Begin boarding!" Zithis ordered.

A line of lab techs formed up next to the attack pods and began seeing to the soldiers, one by one, pod by pod starting from the elites. As they worked, Zithis floated above it all with his intense gaze unwavering. While Seph waited his turn with the rest of the middle class he stewed in silent anger at Zithis' response.

Implying he was a coward like that! Everyone knew he hung out with Rikku a lot. _Everyone_! Now he'd made him look like a fool in front of the entire Outpost for asking a perfectly valid question. Seph folded his arms and glared at the ground so Zithis' wouldn't catch his irritation and reprimand him-or worse. It was odd though that if all soldiers were needed immediately they didn't include the Saiyan army. Seph knew if Rikku were here he'd punch about a billion holes in his idea in about 2 seconds of considering it. The smartest thing was to just go with the plan and hope he met up with Rikku later.

The Frieza Force was a lonely place for all of their numbers and with Rikku gone, Seph had no one. He'd rather not lose a friend when he had literally no one else. Even the other members of the Saiyan army who were pretty much segregated wouldn't talk to him. Not Raditz when he was alive, not Naya, not Nappa and definitely not Vegeta. All the other soldiers did was make fun of him for his dark skin, short coarse hair, inability to actively use ki and overall weird demeanour. The Saiyans didn't do any of those- well, except for Rikku but that was different; he was an asshole- but that was mostly cause they wouldn't even give him the time of day. To them he existed, like air, but was not paid much attention to also like air. He happened and life went on.

Reflecting on all this, Seph nearly didn't realize someone was flagging him down. It was one of the lab techs, next to an attack pod. It was at this point that Seph realized that most of the army had been sent off and it was his turn. Looking up he saw Zithis' impatient stare on him and hurried forward. The tech tapped the pod and had it open up, then had him take off his glove on his favoured hand which was his left. She used some kind of transparent palm sized wipe on him and placed it against the pod and then let him put his glove back on.

She gestured for him to sit in it, saying the coordinates were already set in a voice that sounded canned. It was at this point that Seph realized this alien looked a lot like the Saiyans. In fact, if her skin wasn't so oddly coloured in swirly multi couloured patterns he'd take her for a Saiyan. As it was he was tempted to scout her but decided against it, letting the hand he was going to raise to his blue scouter hang limply at his side. She was really pretty too and her glasses just made her look cute.

Seph sat admiring the view as she bustled about the pod, setting preparations and all sorts of stuff lab techs did that he never paid attention to. She eventually finished and came around to close the door so he could start the ignition sequence.

" _When you get to Veridia find Rikku."_

Seph blinked. "What?"

Did she just speak? He wasn't sure. And already she was bustling around, there was no way she said something. The door was closed, the tech stood back and tapped the pod indicating it was ready to go. Seph stared unsure whether she had spoken or he had heard something else and mistook it for words. Through the pod window he noticed Zithis' glare and decided just to punch it.

He hit the ignition button and the pod shot from its dock out into the deep black of space.

 _ **Kin**_

He came to a stop, chest heaving from the exertion he'd maintained for so long. Behind him, his enemies lay strewn haphazardly about the forest floor. His blue gi was torn in places but that was about the only sign Kin had been in a fight at all. The silver haired Saiyan took a last breath and stood up straight. He had places to be right now. As he had been fighting the locals he'd noticed two explosions, one further north where he'd seen a massive waterfall as he had flown toward the ship with RIkku, and the other down near the place where he'd landed the ship. He now realized that perhaps, Rikku's decision was justified and no retribution was in order. Both explosions were massive and had Kin worried as to what was going on.

"I've finally got one of you rats alone."

Kin tensed and sank into his fighting stance one palm raised face down, and his other fist next to his chest. His legs were spread slightly wider than shoulder width and he made sure to keep his eye on his opponent.

And then he saw who exactly his opponent was…

The cloaked figure let out an amused snort. "That's cute really. You're full of holes boy."

Kin staggered back eyes wide. "No…"

"It seems you remember running into me," the cloaked one said nonchalantly. Kin couldn't see its face but he got the distinct impression it was mildly amused but also displeased.

"You and your sister… you both are in my way," it said. "I would ask you to leave this planet but you would take the Saiyan army members with you. That I cannot allow."

Kin gulped, his senses still trying to capture the magnitude of the figure's power. They were failing… miserably.

"You understand don't you?" it continued. "You're going to die here."

Despite his fear, Kin took his stance once again. His knees shook violently, his hands wouldn't stay in place and breathing was difficult. His form was at its absolute worst and he could barely see the enemy ahead of him but he stood- and he knew that was all he would be able to do.

 _ **Naya**_

Vision blurry, body aching in pain Naya still rolled away just as Shadahs fist came crashing down where her head used to be. Without sight or even a sense of direction Naya simply let her body do the talking and whirled her legs, as she swirled into a beautifully smooth windmill and knocked Shadah away in two strikes. She followed through and rose to her feet, panting not even daring to open her eyes lest they betray her.

Shadah roared in anger and charged forward undeterred and Naya tensed when she heard a loud bang, followed by a machine gun fire series of thuds and one final heavy boom.

"Naya? Are you alright?"

That voice…

"Hiyori…?"

"Rikku sent me," the voice of the younger Saiyan explained.

Naya gave a pained smile. "Rikku… I see…"

She opened her eyes to see Hiyori covered in bruises and dirt but otherwise fine. She was in a different stance this time with her arms raised and her palms facing inward. Her black eyes looked especially dark now as she gazed into a mess of fallen bark and branches some distance away where Shadah presumably lay.

Naya's left arm hung uselessly by her side almost completely numb except when she tried to move it. Then it became excruciatingly painful. But her mind kept returning to Shadah and Sanza's plan.

"Hiyori… can you buy me some time to think?"

Hiyori nodded. "I can't keep him off you but I can probably annoy him into focusing on me for a short while. Especially as I am now…"

Naya understood. Hiyori was also wounded after all and was still recovering. "A few seconds is all I need Hiyori, I just need to get my thoughts together."

Shadah burst out of the debris with a roar and Hiyori immediately rushed forward to meet him. Shadah swung at her and she ducked whirling around the blow with two strikes with the tips of her fingers, then six more in the following instant and as Shadah whirled around yelling, "Light blows like that will never hurt me!" Hiyori spun around his retaliatory knee and slammed the back of her wrist into his ribs with all her speed, momentum and power. Shadah howled in pain from the heavy blow and stumbled, and Hiyori immediately capitalized by jumping onto his chest and slamming a palm thrust into his forehead. Shadah fell with a grunt and she jumped off him before he could try anything.

Seeing this Naya was satisfied Hiyori could distract him, though she knew she would never win with that kind of strength and it was only a matter of time. And so she relaxed, let her mind roam and those instincts she relied on so much take a back seat. And as she thought about what Sanza had said to Shadah she realized she couldn't make any sense of it. Was it a transformation? Was it something else? Some kind of grand plan? She didn't know!

Shadah roared some more as he chased after Hiyori in the treetops trying to crush her and voicing his frustration. Trees shook, the ground quaked, pieces of branches and bark fell. Naya knew she was running out of time. She was half tempted to be angry at how Rikku could assess these types of situations so easily but knew that would be a waste of time, and she tried and tried and tried but no possible thoughts came to mind. Not to mention she was distracted by all the noise. There was a loud cry and Hiyori suddenly came flying into view and crashed into the ground in front of Naya hard enough to cave it in. Hiyori curled as she screamed silently her wounds clearly making their voices heard at the extra damage taken.

Damn it. She'd come up with nothing and there was no way Hiyori could continue.

And up ahead Naya saw Shadah rushing at them and leaping up, clearly ready to finish things… and that was when she remembered…

And at the memory she smirked… _I can't believe I forgot that the answer was so simple…_

 _She crashed into the ground for the tenth time in a row that day, covered in dirt and bruises._

" _Get up and try again."_

 _Naya sat up rubbing her jaw with a pained look. "It's no good I can't do it. I can't think as fast as you."_

 _The seven year old boy opposite her with the coarse, curly hair and the bronze skin glared at her, his wild look becoming even more threatening._

" _You can and you will. Do not question me."_

" _But I-"_

" _Quiet!"_

 _And Naya went silent. The boy stood for several minutes his cold gaze resting on her as if he intended to freeze her. But eventually he sighed, his expression not necessarily softening but no longer as cold as before._

" _Fine then. Until you can do so, rely on me."_

 _Naya blinked. "Huh?"_

 _His look hardened. "I hate repeating myself girl."_

" _But that doesn't solve the problem-"_

" _Unless you work on it until you no longer need me."_

 _Naya stared in surprise, having never expected him to say something like that. He was being…nice…_

 _He frowned. "Close your mouth. It's disgusting."_

Naya grinned now. _I'm sorry Rikku. Looks like… I still have to leave it all to you._

And as Shadah drew closer, her right fist clenched and tightened and she took her stance one handed, firm and strong once more.

Shadah reared back a fist and threw it forward with all his might.

And as it came Naya's grin widened. _When will I ever learn…_

 _ **Rikku**_

The red Veridian's blows were practically drifting by this point. I knocked aside two punches and leaped up, spinning in midair and driving a powerful back kick into his ribs before he could launch a third. There was an audible crack and the red furred Veridian was thrown back as blood spurted from his mouth. I landed lightly on my toes just as he slammed into the trunk of the tree we were fighting on. I gazed down the length of the massive branch we'd been fighting on at him and let out a breath, that was only slightly a wheeze. Even injured he'd managed to make me work a bit, but it was clear who the victor was.

"This fight is pointless now…" I said, rubbing at the few bruises he's been able to give me. His attacks were strong even tired as he was.

He lay there halfway in the tree trunk, smoking slightly. He struggled to raise his head and look at me but eventually he managed it, and even though his eyes were half lidded with fatigue they still shone with focus. I frowned at that: he hadn't given up it seemed.

He grinned. "You don't want to find out how I beat your partner?"

"You made her think something that may or may not be true and didn't give her time to determine the truth," I said pointedly. "This served to occupy her thoughts and distract her. Naturally, it had to be something that really bothered her, something you would only know by spying or through confrontation."

He frowned as I said this.

"Best conclusion is that Green overheard her yelling at me for taking so much damage, so you concluded that she dislikes me getting excessively hurt," I continued. "Additionally, you found a way to plant the idea of a possibility that I will sustain such damage again."

I glared at him. "In other words, you messed with her head. There is no real threat other than you and possibly your second form."

"You figured all that out while fighting me…" he said. "You really are no slouch. Were you even really paying attention to our battle?"

I turned away, preparing to fly and go meet Naya. "You're not worth my time," I said simply.

I darted to the side as a bolt of red energy roared past me and turned just as it blew a large chunk out of a tree behind me. Ashes floated on the wind as I glared at the now risen Veridian, his hand outstretched.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that," he said. "As Sanza, the Chief of the Veridian's, I cannot and **will** not let you go."

His eyes took on a hard glint and they narrowed. This time it seemed… he meant it… He truly meant to kill me. No more tricks. No more mind games. No more trying to be a smartass… He was going to put his all into this fight- and kill me.

I smiled at this thought and said, "You don't want to fight me like that Sanza. Really, you don't."

I let my gaze harden reflecting that same cold glint. **"Because you'll die trying."**

* * *

 **Ok so R &R people. Let me know about any thoughts you may have and how you like it so far and where you think it may go. I'm curious lol. Also it's motivating. Also, it's kind of sad how Kin and Hiyori keep getting into trouble tho. An unfortunate side effect of being in a place they shouldn't have been. So... later people.**

 **P.S. Oops, nearly forgot the power levels.**

 **Rikku:4500**

 **Sanza:3000**

 **Naya(injured):3000**

 **Shadah(2nd): 10000**

 **Kin(After receiving spare energy):2750**

 **Unknown:?**

 **Hiyori(injured):1500**


	8. Chapter 7

**I'm back again with yet another one. Very busy but you all knew that. Anyway, here's the next. I predict more free time in June thereabouts. Actually, let's make that after June. Never mind, to be honest I don't know when I'll ever be free. I just post as and when I can. I haven't and will never quit this story. If I do I will say so. So those of you reading this story and wondering if I quit don't worry about it. I'm still around.**

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

 **Seph**

Ok that planet was definitely not Namek, for one thing Seph's pod was literally the only artificial thing around it. There were no other space pods or spaceships around it and absolutely no sign of the Frieza Force's presence anywhere near it. Seph used the screen on the left armrest of his pod seat to zoom in, covering what was still light years too early for him to see. Perhaps that technician _did_ say something then or maybe she messed up somehow, either way he couldn't change his coordinates so he would take it as is. He'd see how things went after landing.

It did lead him to wondering though, what was so important about having that Saiyan jerk around if he was sent to get him? Also where in hell was he supposed to take him if he did find him? Or did he need saving of some kind, ha that would be so funny. But Naya was there… or maybe she needed saving too and maybe then she'd talk to him for once. His expression soured at the thought of the way she treated him.

She seemed friendly enough at first when he saw her for the first time. He'd been with Rikku at the time but he eventually came to realize she was talking only to Rikku and not him, and whenever he said something it was usually ignored. Granted he said a lot of random stuff a lot of the time but he didn't see any reason why she would ignore him so completely. As for Nappa and Vegeta, they were elites so Seph didn't really expect much from them but Naya and Rikku were basically his equals, Saiyan army or no. He had no idea what that was about but he didn't like it, and it made him angry thinking about it. Heck sometimes Rikku made him angry with his attitude… but that was going into a fight he'd never win, both verbally and physically. It was hard to argue with someone that opinionated.

Ok now he was getting irritated, he had to think of something else… But still this pod was incredibly fast, Seph was surprised that it had covered such a large distance in such a short time. He was sure the ETA had said a few days but once some distance away from the Outpost his speed had increased drastically to the point where ETA now told him he'd be there in a few minutes. What kind of pod was this? If he were to guess it would be the pod belonging to the super elites. Wow, that lab tech really hooked him up with something good. So far it looked like whatever was going to happen, Seph was going to get thrown right into the thick of things without much warning. Frankly, he wasn't looking forward to it.

 **Rikku**

Sanza stood at the opposite end of the branch, blood leaking from one side of his mouth and his bruises visible even through his brightly coloured red fur. It was late afternoon by this point and the orange rays of the sun made his fur seem even brighter, almost as if he were glowing. The breeze was also starting to pick up as the forest cooled and it rushed over my bare chest, cooling me down with its passage. It was a great feeling. The forest had become darker in shade with patches of orange sunlight illuminating it in places.

The branch itself was a mess all too visible in its own giant patch of sunlight, with scrapes and holes in the brown bark and, despite being as large as most two way streets, looked as if thirty cavemen had gotten too excited with their stone clubs. The length of it was pockmarked with craters and dents and scraped bark. In all that, tree sap leaked out in some places.

"For a death match this makes a shitty arena," I said. "You don't plan to fight me in this do you?"

"I would move but I'm fairly sure you'll try to get away," Sanza replied.

I shrugged. "I might have. I don't much feel like it right now."

"I'm going to take you down," Sanza said as he sank into his stance. "Enough talk."

His stance was interesting, with his lead hand stretched out all the way and the other one pulled back to his waist.

I gave a sigh and leaned forward onto my toes. "Come then."

Sanza zoomed forward and fired his back fist, but I easily side stepped it. He whirled on me and I leaped back, dodging the following palm strike and round kick. I glided to the side skimming my feet with every step, slipping through his attacks. Sanza rounded on me with another barrage of strikes but I slid by them all just waiting for my chance- There!

Sanza turned once more with a hook this time and I spun around it, unleashing a spinning hook kick in response. My attack collided solidly with his jaw and he stumbled away cursing. I stood calmly watching him, I was in no hurry. Hiyori had gone to help Naya, Kin only had small fry to deal with and all Naya needed to do was focus to beat Shadah. I was not worried, Sanza's game was a poor play that had failed and now that he was staking so much on this battle he was giving me a poor show. I was bored.

Sanza was slow and weak and tired. I was still relatively fresh and stronger to begin with from the looks of it. I could not be bothered with him.

"For someone who's fighting seriously you're not trying very hard," I said.

Sanza growled and rushed me again. Two immensely predictable jabs and a cross away he was sent stumbling back again.

I pointed at my face. "You see this expression? I'm _bored._ "

Sanza roared. "I'll take it up to max then!"

His aura flared to life, red energy blazing around him. The wind whipped up as his power churned the air and vibrated the tree branch. The sight made me grin. _Now we're talking!_

Sanza charged me again, a red flaming blur. I cartwheeled to the side as he bulldozed past but he turned and fired a massive ball of red energy just as I got my footing. I immediately countered with an energy blast of my own. The two blasts exploded in my face throwing me off the branch completely. I twisted in midair and harnessed my energy, trying to regain control before I hit the ground but then- a blur!

Sanza smashed into me feet first. I curled around the blow, pain roaring through my midsection. I went flying straight down into the ground and smashed it, rock flying up from the impact. Sanza fired another blast to finish things but I kicked it out of the way and rolled aside just as he smashed into the ground fist first. He charged me through the spray of rock and choking dust attacking furiously but crisply, his punches and kicks sharp and accurate. I fell back under the assault as we zoomed over the forest floor, throwing punches off course and dodging kicks.

Sanza let off a wild round house and I leaped back then skipped forward with an axe kick that he dodged. He came back around with a back ridge that I ducked under and countered with one of my own, but he blocked it and fired another massive energy blast. I slipped my head to the side and let it flash past, rammed my elbow into his temple, punched him in the ribs and then shoved him back out of fighting range. The red energy exploded something behind me and a strong wind blew past for a few seconds, clearly displaced by the blast.

I rubbed my stomach, discomforted by the blow from before. Sanza on the other hand looked just about ready to topple over. His red aura was fluctuating wildly as if struggling to stay alive, and his gaze…. His eyes were glazed over like he couldn't even see. It was… pitiful to be honest. His dark face was painted in blood from his temple, his mouth was leaking blood and he could barely stand. It was at moments like this that I truly felt evil… like I was trash… Moments like this where the true impact of what I was doing would hit me and make me realize why I was in the Frieza Force. We killed people who never asked for it for a living and we did it on a galactic scale.

A weak feeling washed through me, and my body suddenly felt so very useless. I raised my hand and realized I was trembling. My legs felt weak and wouldn't support me, standing was a fight. I knew what this was… ever since I met Naya this had been happening to me. This feeling was because I didn't quite feel like fighting anymore…

 _What is possibly worth inflicting this kind of damage on someone? Pride…? Money…?_

Sanza growled and straightened up once more, and charged again. His fist pounded into my cheek hard enough to knock me sprawling and I didn't bother to get back up. I couldn't get up even if I wanted to. I didn't feel the need...despite the situation… despite the fact that this guy might actually really hurt me.

Sanza leaped above me and sent another blast of energy my way. I barely rolled aside and felt the explosion push me forward, the sting of stones bouncing off my skin as I popped to my feet. Sanza didn't wait for me to recover and immediately zoomed in from above. I fell back under Sanza's assault as he rushed me with a storm of punches and kicks that I could barely bring myself to dodge and block. I couldn't find any chances to counter… or turn things around.

And honestly I wasn't sure I wanted to…

 **Shadah**

Shadah skidded backwards from the force of the enemy's punch, unable to believe his eyes. She who had been struggling just minutes ago had countered him hard enough to hurt him. He was stunned.

 _Impossible! How….?_

He stared as the darker skinned female turned around to the smaller lighter skinned one and picked her up with her one good arm. Part of Shadah reminded him that he could attack now but so surprised was he by the punch she'd smashed into his chin that he just stood there watching her care for her partner.

She placed the girl against one of the roots of the surrounding trees and gave her a light slap across the cheek. "Hiyori, wake up. I can't leave you here like this."

With a light groan, the smaller one named Hiyori opened her eyes. "Naya…?"

"The one and only," came the reply. She had her back turned to Shadah but he felt like she was smiling. It was just something you could feel, a vibe she gave. And Shadah remembered… back when she fought both him and his father it was the same when she said she was going to beat them. He'd felt a wave of certainty, determination and focus emanating from her. Like at the moment she made up her mind there was this pressure she had whenever her gaze fell on him… and Shadah could feel it again.

"Scum… how did you knock me back so easily?"

At his words the girl turned her gaze back on him, and Shadah shuddered involuntarily despite being over twice her size and by far stronger for that matter. Her eyes that looked brown before had a glint to them that made her look so much fiercer, like he was being gazed at by some kind of predator. Dark brown eyes narrowed in fury, her teeth gritted in obvious rage. At that moment, she looked a whole lot more dangerous than before. Every instinct Shadah had told him to stay clear of her… that look in her eyes was a warning… a prophecy of what was to come. Those eyes promised him pain.

Shadah shook himself. _What is the superior creature scared of the insect for? I will crush the enemy!_

He lowered himself in preparation to overwhelm her and get in her guard as he did before. As he did so, the girl never took her eyes off him, and stood up turning slowly to face him.

"Hiyori," she said. "You should get out of here. This is gonna get destructive very quickly. Can you stand?"

The other one slowly, sat up. "I can… I think."

"Good get going."

The Hiyori girl wobbled to her feet, swayed dangerously for a second and then rose into the air slowly and carefully.

"Get to Rikku," Naya said, still not lifting her gaze off Shadah. "He'll protect you."

At that word Shadah froze. _Protect? Is that what she said just now?_

In his entire life, never once had anyone ever protected Shadah. He'd only ever known scorn and the never ending desire to grow strong enough to honour his father. But he'd never once known what it was like to be protected… and only once had he known the love of a parent. And these monsters, these killers knew what it meant to protect something…? What did that say about his own people who did nothing but scorn him…? Did they really protect anything but themselves…?

A sudden impact slammed solidly into his face and Shadah went careening into the deeper forest, fetching up against a fallen branch. He tilted his head just as the girl's sandaled foot slammed into the spot his head was just in and splintered the entire thing. Shadah found himself staring into a face that looked almost inhuman, and the feeling that he was in the presence of a predator multiplied hundredfold. His breath caught, and his body began to twitch.

" **Oi. The fight's started** ," the girl said, her eyes narrowing. **"I'm going to kill you and there will be no comebacks."**

She glared down at him. **"You'd best get serious."**

At this Shadah sat there, his back against the massive brown branch as the girl retracted her leg and stepped back. It seemed in the time he'd been spacing out the other girl was long gone and he'd been launched quite a distance back. Once again he was slacking, he could already hear the yelling.

 _Hey! Shadah! Stop being so useless! You're getting in Sanza's way!_

At the thought a powerful rage flooded his system. He knew it was a rage born of denial and he knew it was misguided but Shadah couldn't accept that his father… that his family… his _people_ had never done something as simple as protect him. It didn't matter what from. All they'd ever done was yell at him, scream that he was inadequate and he was… he knew he was! They had every right! But just now… that girl Hiyori. She couldn't stand up to him and yet they were going to protect her! They were looking out for her! Even though she failed against him, hadn't even lasted two minutes she had people who would stand between her and any threat.

Shadah didn't know what kind of bond the enemy had with each other but it was clearly much better than the one he shared with his people. With his father. And the thought of this more than anything, burned his soul in a way nothing else had. Not the feelings of inadequacy, not the pain of being the only son who would never be good enough. To be protected, to feel safe, to feel like he belonged… Shadah didn't have anything like that. And it made his spirit burn in a way it hadn't ever before.

Letting the rage pool and sync with his entire being Shadah let loose a roar and charged forward. The girl blurred and so began the most brutal fight he'd ever been in. Shadah swung his fists and threw his kicks trying to overwhelm her and get into her guard but she fought like a monster, a completely different opponent. Each blow was not merely blocked like before but blown aside completely and every effort to pin her down was evaded, through all this her gaze never once shifted never once softened.

Shadah swung wide and didn't even see the kick that slammed into his chin and knocked him into the tree tops. His vision darkened for a few seconds but that was enough for Shadah to know that she had hurt him badly despite the difference in power.

 _HOW?! HOW IS SHE DOING THIS?!_

He flipped backward and landed on a branch high up just as the girl slammed into him feet first. Shadah went hurtling into the tree trunk. With a roar he burst out, ripping some of the bark off with the force of his exit and he rammed an elbow into her. Then a kick, a punch, a spin and then another elbow. The girl dodged and blocked with beast like reflexes completely undeterred by the powerful blows. She drilled three heavy jabs into Shadah's body and he caved like a wet tissue. His insides heaved and Shadah's breath suddenly cut short, his vision darkened once more and just for a second his knees wobbled and brought him down. A powerful kick was instantly slammed into his jaw and Shadah was blown off the tree entirely.

 _NO! I WILL NOT LOSE! I CANNOT!_

Shadah crashed into the ground hard enough to dig a crater, but he instantly shot to his feet and charged out to meet the blur that just landed in front of it. And as he charged and the girl leaped up with one leg chambered for a flying kick, Shadah knew deep in his heart that despite not wanting to lose, despite fighting for his father and his people… he could no longer quite figure out…

 _Why…_

 **Naya**

Shadah went careening into a tree and hard enough to put a crack straight through the entire trunk. Naya zoomed in and kicked him clean through before he could get back up and yet another trail of destruction was bored into the forest landscape. Shadah blasted his way out of his crude grave and shot forward covering the massive gap between them in seconds and attacking with a cross that Naya smashed out of the way with all the brute strength in her one hand, kicked him in the jaw so hard he lifted off the ground, spun around him and slammed a side kick into his back that sent him shooting off into the treetops. Shockwaves followed all three blows and whirled violently through the forest, tearing at leaves and ripping up grass.

Naya zoomed upward after him and landed on the branch he'd smacked into with her stance already intact. Shadah got to his feet, only slightly hurt by her most powerful strikes. He was however very dirty and he seemed to take this as a point of insult that she, someone so much weaker, could give him so much trouble. Naya should have been worried about the strength gap, about how poorly her full power shots were working. She was not worried. She cared about nothing, knew no one, there was only the opponent to be conquered. She had a single minded focus that her entire existence revolved around and that was eliminating Shadah.

Shadah growled and charged once again and Naya met him head on. The two fell to blows, Naya dancing around him and firing kicks and Shadah trying to close in on her and use his superior strength to overwhelm her but with her attention no longer divided, Naya's superiority as a fighter was self-evident. Shadah was no match despite his superior strength. Shadah overbalanced trying to reach her and was punished with a heavy blow to his jawline that sent him staggering. Naya immediately charged in and growled as she encased her entire right arm in hardened energy. Before Shadah could even dream of recovering she drove the punch right into his abused jaw for the second time. A blast of raw force exploded from the point of impact and the entire branch rattled violently. Splinters flew into the air like spitfire and entire strips of bark ripped themselves from the massive tree.

The pressure on her arm was overwhelming. Naya could feel the bones and muscles in her arm vibrating dangerously to the point where she could hear her shoulder joint rattling in its socket. And slowly, her fist was being forced back. She looked up and saw Shadah's eyes shining red with the burning fury he'd been filled with for the entire fight, the brutal rage he had brought to bear on her and her own beast like fury responded rising till she felt like she was swelling with its turbulence. Naya gritted her teeth and pushed even harder pouring all her strength, weight and energy behind the strike. The sheer force of the attack was ripping bark off the massive branch and tearing leaves off till all the debris swirled in a giant storm around them and then-

A loud crack! Shadah's face caved in with a horrible squelching, crunching noise and , with a loud explosion of force, the Veridian was blasted off the tree entirely and through three more until he slammed into one several meters away and stuck there. Naya gave a roar that was more animal than anything as all the emotions she had been surpressing came back to her in one moment, worry about Rikku, the pain as her right arm finally collapsed from the power of the final blow, her injuries and her victory. She howled as her energy responded and rose ever higher until it reached its peak and roared to life around her as a blazing aura several times her size. It pushed away all the dust, all the bark, all the leaves, all the debris and the smoke from holes in the surrounding trees away from her and cleared the area completely. The branch she was on shuddered violently under the weight of her strength as if nature itself was vibrating with her rising emotions, all expressed in that one roar.

And finally as her power burned itself out and began to die away, leaving her hollow and empty and tired Naya swayed, her aura fading away to nothing. She couldn't feel her arms anymore and she was so tired she doubted she could even move if she wanted, her eyes were closing and without that insane focus and beast like fury to fuel her she could no longer maintain her super human exertion. She finally gave in and fell over the side of the tree, her thoughts hazy and half formed.

 _I did it. Now it's your turn Rikku… Don't you dare fail me now… You better fight._

 _Like you mean it…_

 **Kin**

Kin was very sure he should have died several times by now, but it seemed after finally cornering him something had caught the cloaked figure's attention. It had been standing still looking in the direction of the ship, or rather an area a bit beyond the where the ship was. It had Kin wondering what exactly had grabbed its attention- not enough to make him stay and find out but he knew it was still aware of him and he knew the second he ran he was toast. So he stood there, still in his fighting stance, tense and worried but also curious.

"So that's your true strength…" the figure murmured. "And here I figured I would have to personally make you fight with your full capability…"

Kin frowned, and began trying to sense whatever the figure was sensing but its power was so overwhelming Kin couldn't sense anything at all beyond the strength of the unknown figure, a supreme vastness he couldn't wrap his mind around. Whoever or whatever this was, they were amazingly powerful and Kin didn't dare get on their nerves but he was so curious…. Also he was worried about Hiyori and the others, he'd been away for quite a while now and he had no idea whether they'd been attacked just as he was or what the people who attacked him had in store for them. Unfortunately, this thing was so powerful its strength was literally drowning his senses so he couldn't feel anything beyond its own power.

"Ummmm excuse me…," Kin began.

It didn't turn around. "I don't know if you're brave or just stupid trying something like speaking to me."

Kin faltered and said nothing.

"But I suppose that is ok, I have use for you now…"

Kin froze. _There's no way…_

"Yes I know about the power you're hiding," it said, a hint of amusement in its tone. "I have need of it."

Kin wanted to vehemently deny having any such thing. But he was so stunned… how did this person know? It wasn't exactly something that could be sensed unless actively in use, he'd taken pains to make sure no one would ever guess. Not even Rikku and Naya had noticed it and they weren't as blinded by arrogance as most soldiers of Frieza seemed to be.

"It seems another interruption is on the way," the figure continued. "But I'm in no hurry now, things are well under control."

Kin still couldn't wrap his mind around what had just happened. If he was tense before he was a hundred times more so now. Who was this person?

"Who are you?" Kin asked. "How…?"

The figure shifted. "None of your concern boy. You will simply do as I say and I will let you go. My request is after all a simple one."

It seemed to contemplate that sentence. "More of a command actually."

Kin didn't even have the fire in him to ask what would happen if he didn't.

"Once I let you go, you will go with the Saiyans in the Frieza Force. You will help them however you can. Also I wish you to test them with that power later on when they are ready… I would very much like to see how they handle you then."

"But I have my own life to live," Kin began to protest. "I only care about protecting my sister-"

"Frieza destroyed your life," it cut in. "That sister is all you have. Aside from revenge you have no goals and no place to return to. Are you sure you want to disobey me? I cannot take back any destruction on my part. Choose wisely boy."

Kin closed his mouth, straightened up into a proper standing position and bowed his head. He knew all those words were true but his freedom mattered to him. But he also knew, even more than his freedom, if Hiyori was alive and happy, if he killed Frieza and brought her peace of mind, his parents could rest in peace and Hiyori could be like a normal person once more. No more breakdowns… no more crying, screaming in the night…

Kin raised his head and stood firm. "I'll do it."

The figure snorted. "Like you had a choice there. It was that or die."

It looked around the clearing and stepped to the side in between four fallen Veridians, then looked up at the sky. Kin blinked in confusion. Was there something happening that he was missing? Maybe some leftover enemies he failed to notice? Also, he was extremely muddled over what he'd just agreed to, overall Kin's focus was shot. It was thus no surprise to him that when the cloaked figure spoke again he obeyed on pretty much automatic.

"Get behind the trees there."

Kin had walked behind them and crouched before he'd even realized that he'd been told to do it. He nearly cursed at himself but was captivated by what the cloaked figure was doing. He followed its gaze up into the sky at an angle right in the middle of all four dead bodies, and watched it closely, wondering what it was looking for.

Minutes passed, and darkening late afternoon sky began to grow ever darker. Still Kin watched with them. All was silent and unmoving for a while, and then the cloaked figure raised one arm toward the spot where it was looking and said, "Right here."

As soon as the last word left its mouth, there was a flash and a massive boom. Shockwaves rolled through the forest, pulling at the planet's massive trees, ripping at its grass and throwing aside all the unconscious natives. Kin struggled to maintain his position as the force grabbed and tore at him, and the wind from whatever just happened was rushing so violently against him he couldn't even open his eyes. He was half afraid he'd get knocked out by some flying debris or something, especially since he wasn't at full strength.

After several seconds, the mayhem died down and the wild wind finally petered out. The debris being thrown about finally settled on the ground and normalcy resumed. Until Kin opened his eyes. He actually rubbed them a few times to make sure of what he was seeing. He blinked afterwards three times to be extra sure.

Caught in the grip, of the mysterious cloaked figure… was a SPACEPOD! Kin gasped in surprise and stumbled backwards, tripped over a root and fell on his butt. He couldn't believe his eyes. Standing smugly in the middle of a whole new crater, _completely_ unfazed the figure stood holding a spaceship it obviously just _caught_ mid landing.

Kin was in shock. _Who is this? What are they? What kind of reckless strength was this?_

It dropped the pod unceremoniously and stared at it expectantly. Kin watching out of sheer curiosity and respect remained silent. Power that so vastly exceeded anything he'd ever seen or heard of was humbling to him. He doubted even Frieza was capable of what this mysterious individual had repeatedly accomplished with almost no effort.

There was a hiss as the door to the pod fell open and a humanoid came stumbling out. It was a soldier of the Frieza Force yet again Kin noted. He was very obviously different from the two Saiyans Kin was already familiar with. For one thing, his skin was very dark, almost black in fact. His hair was short and coarse, his face was rugged, his eyes narrow and black. He was visibly muscular, though not huge and puffed up. He was by no means big and in fact Kin was about the same height as him. He was dressed in a black body suit, white gloves and white boots with the standard body armor of the Frieza Force. He had some sort of eye glass over one eye with a red lens.

The soldier seemed disoriented for a second and then blinked furiously a few times.

"Ok, now… I just gotta find-"

"Welcome," the cloaked figure cut in.

The soldier jumped and clutched his chest with a yell. Kin couldn't help but laugh, the fearsome Frieza Force frightened by a simple greeting. The picture was simply too hilarious for him to keep it in. The soldier glared at the both of them.

"What the hell was that for? I'm busy right now!"

The figure said nothing for several seconds. Then… "You were looking for something?"

"You don't need to know anything about me. In fact, I'd be glad if you pretended I wasn't here and scrammed," the soldier countered.

Kin was amazed at how oblivious this soldier was. _Perhaps this is what Hiyori feels like when I miss an obvious observation…_

He wanted to warn the soldier that the one in the cloak was not to be messed with when it spoke again.

"You make a fair point. My job here is done as far as I'm concerned anyway."

Kin blinked in surprise. _It's letting him live…_

Although he could see no face when it turned its gaze on him, Kin could feel the pressure of being observed.

"You have your job, I trust you will follow through," it said.

Kin nodded.

"Good. I would like not having to waste time on you."

It turned away from them both and then said, "Be seeing you."

A small blur and it was gone. Kin sighed and finally relaxed muscles that had been tense throughout the entire encounter. Normally he would still have reason to be tense what with a member of the Frieza Force nearby but he didn't much care. Compared to the being that just left, the soldier was easy pickings.

Kin gathered himself to take flight while the soldier ignored him and began fiddling with the lens thing. He shook his head, wondering if the entire Frieza Force was like this and then zoomed into the air and shot off into the forest. Branches and leaves and forest landscape whizzed past as Kin blasted through the air like a missile, haste and urgency written all over his very essence. He had to get back to Hiyori and the others. He hated to think what could have gone wrong while he was away.

Minutes passed as Kin flew through the forest and he found himself thinking. How was he going to explain this new development to Rikku and Naya? How could he suddenly want to stick with them? Also how would he inform Hiyori without those two catching on to him? Definitely, he had wanted to stick with them and yes he did like those two despite who they were and, in RIkku's case his attitude. Even so, he'd known that wasn't going to happen by dint of their different goals and backgrounds. Those Saiyans were a bad idea in the end. How would he get away with saying he wanted to hang around them now?

As he got closer to the place where the ship was, Kin passed over a spot in the forest that had seen massive destruction.

 _I wonder who did this…? They must have fought here… Wait what's that?_

Kin stopped mid-flight and floated down to the ground to get a closer look. He was sure he'd seen a person just now. As he drew closer, Kin realized he _had_ seen someone. It was Naya to be more specific. Kin was horrified by how messed up she was, lying in the dirt surrounded by forest debris and covered in blood from her forehead and down the entire length of one arm. Her clothes were all torn up too. Her eyes were glazed over and her breathing was heavy and irregular. She was in terrible condition.

He landed and immediately rushed over. If she was aware of his presence, Naya didn't show it.

"Naya. Are you listening? Can you hear me?" He briefly considered shaking her but in her current condition she'd probably shake into the void.

Naya inclined her head as if drunk. Kin was highly disturbed by this and figured maybe he could take her to the ship to see if she was really ok. They had medical equipment in there he could use to some degree; at the very least it was better than nothing. He began to haul her to her feet so he could get his body under her, taking care to lift from the arm that wasn't bleeding.

 _Funny, this would have been the perfect chance to kill her and steal her armor and stuff to sneak into the Force. But here I am…_

Kin slowly rose into the air again, taking his time so he didn't aggravate any wounds. He was sure she could still feel pain, she gave a vibe of consciousness despite her condition. If he was too rough he would hurt her.

"Take me to Rikku…."

 _Did she just speak?_

"Take me… to Rikku…"

"Ummm Naya, you're not in any condition…"

"I don't give a damn…." Her voice wobbled. "My power… is maximum…."

Kin blinked. "What?"

"Just… take me… That idiot needs me…"

She slumped over his shoulder, her eyes finally closing. Kin watched her, conflicted now. She was injured but she wanted to go see Rikku who was probably fighting. And she said he needed her…

Kin's eyes widened as realization dawned. The timing with which she'd fallen asleep made him think…

 _Did she stay awake waiting for someone to come take her to Rikku?_

Kin sighed. You couldn't just spit on determination like that, it was plain rude. "To Rikku it is then."

 ** _Rikku_**

Sanza pressured me, trying to get in his finishing blow. His expression was wild, his red aura was blazing, his movements were sloppy and his desperation obvious. It was so easy to dodge him that despite my reluctance he still wasn't doing much damage to me and despite the advantage I still couldn't bring myself to hurt him. He was trying to kill me, he'd hurt Naya but I still didn't want to hurt him. If we hadn't come here, there would have been no need for this. What meaning was there to a fight like this?

 _Couldn't we just leave each other alone?_

Of course saying that after killing his people was senseless, but nevertheless I couldn't hurt him. I felt deep down that there were better ways to solve this. That killing him wasn't necessary, orders from Frieza or no. We'd been betrayed. Frieza was no longer a factor as far as I was concerned. I didn't _have_ to kill Sanza and Sanza really didn't have to fight me truth be told. Right now if he asked me to I would leave and never come back. _This fight is pointless…_

I dodged three jabs and sidestepped a cross, completely ignoring the chance to counter. I was punished with a kick to the ribs that sent me stumbling backwards. Sanza leaped up and rammed me in the chest with both feet. I was sent flying and crashed into the ground not for the first time since our battle had started. This time I didn't get up. I didn't feel the need to. I was honestly no longer interested in fighting. I couldn't summon up the aggression.

I smiled wryly as I lay in the dirt. Ever since I met Naya I hadn't been able to summon the aggression… that burning will to fight back… allow nothing to walk all over me. I'd lost it long ago… I watched Sanza leap up in preparation to finish me off when a bolt of energy knocked him off course and he crashed into a nearby tree.

I followed the course of the blast to find Hiyori floating in the air with one arm outstretched. She was listing dangerously to one side and she looked very beat up. Her expression was one of mild concern, a stark contrast with how hysterical she had been before. I snorted and sat up.

"Did you find Naya then?" I asked.

"I… did…" she huffed.

"And?"

"She's dealing with Shadah," Hiyori answered. "Actually…"

She paused for a minute and closed her eyes. "She beat Shadah. She's heading this way with Kin but her energy is very faint."

I stared. "How do you know that?"

"Kin and I know how to sense energy…" she replied. As she spoke she started to sink, slowly at first and then she fell completely.

I flitted beneath her and caught her with some effort. I then set her down none to gently. She was much too tired to glare at me or complain, but the glint in her eye was revealing enough.

"Better from this height than all the way up there," I said with a shrug.

I turned over what she said in my head. Naya's energy was faint, she was with Kin, they were coming here…. And Shadah was probably dead or close to it. The problem here was how to get past Sanza so we could go back to the base and find out what was going on, I wasn't interested in beating him or hurting him. He also couldn't let me go on my word alone, he had a whole planet to safeguard after all. From his point of view I could be lying, or worse going for reinforcements. Sanza could not afford to let us live even if I actually had no intention of causing any more damage or even being a threat.

I turned back to the spot where I had last seen Sanza hit the tree and saw him getting to his feet in spite of his injuries.

I sighed. _Nothing for it then…_

I would stall him till Naya and Kin got here then have Kin take both Hiyori and Naya to the ship while I held Sanza here. If necessary, they would leave without me. Plain and simple. Sanza charged once more and I stopped him with one hand, then weaved through his punches as he pressed the offence and then spun around him as soon as his combo came to an end. He whirled with a backridge but I'd already stepped back. His breathing was heavy but even so, he only paused for a second. He came forward once again.

As Sanza tried and failed to hit me, his attacks growing weaker and slower with every blow I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye. And it made me stop. Sanza's punch finally connected and it was so weak I didn't even feel it. My focus lay on the forest surrounding us. Stepping from between various trees and roots, fallen branches, broken rocks and torn leaves the size of blankets various humanoids began to surround us. I recognized them, the fur was a dead giveaway : these were Sanza's people.

Sanza withdrew his fist and stumbled backwards and finally collapsed onto his back.

"What do you say we stop things here Sanza?" I said.

He was breathing so hard he couldn't even speak so I continued. "I have the upper hand, no one here is strong enough to take me on and frankly I'm tired of fighting. I promise you this will be the last you hear of me."

The people around us all frowned and started shouting and cursing at me. None dared throw anything lest they hit their chief, but the message was clear. On the ground, Sanza stared at me for a while.

"Of what worth is your word?" he asked. "What shows that some part of your plan in attacking us has failed and needs reworking? What shows that _your_ job is done but some other team isn't going to come here?"

Those were good questions, as expected of a Chief. Well, I at least tried. I really wasn't expecting him to agree but I pushed anyway.

"I'm not entirely sure I'm still part of the team you speak off," I said honestly. "If it weren't for the girl behind me I would have no way of leaving and she's supposed to be my enemy. I have no team except for the ones I have here and my current agenda lies elsewhere."

Sanza sat up. "You could be lying to me."

"Well I have the power to finish you here, which was my original objective. Why would I leave when I have you at my mercy?"

"As I said before, it may be your objective has failed and needs reworking. Perhaps extermination was just a part of the plan."

"So I take that as a no then?"

"That would be advisable."

"Definitely a no. I'd rather not fight any more Sanza."

He stood up as his people shifted around us looking for a chance to help and do damage. "I cannot in my right mind let you go when you could return and cause more damage."

I closed my eyes. "You're going to die you know."

"Have some respect. I am the Chief for a reason."

I opened my eyes to find him standing before me with his fighting stance once again, his expression grim. I didn't bother with one.

"Your lack of initiative is going to cost you," Sanza said. "I warned you, didn't I? To have some respect… I'm the Chief…"

He shot forward. "For a reason!"

His speed was stunning. An impact to my face and the world was spinning wildly until I hit something solid- a tree root. My vision blackened and my head throbbed violently. My legs wobbled and I fell to my knees, unable to see or hear clearly. My focus dwindled to the feel of the grass and dirt beneath my palms. Vaguely I could hear Sanza's voice.

"I'm taking it to the next level. You will die here."

And a bright red light closed in…

Instantly there was a shout and a loud boom. Somewhere to my right a shockwave rolled by, followed closely by a wave of heat.

I heard Sanza speaking in frustration. "One interruption after the other!"

 _Interruption…?_

I slowly evened out my breathing to recover from Sanza's attack and stood up once the black haze surrounding my vision receded to nothing. Standing in front of me with one hand smoking was a very familiar, dark skinned figure. Following the trail of destruction and the damage to what was once a white gloved hand, I guessed he had punched Sanza's blast away.

"Hmm it's you."

"Wow, such an enthusiastic greeting. That's how you greet your buddy Seph when he saves your butt?"

I couldn't even be bothered to shrug. "You know me."

"You know the last thing I expected to do when I found you was save your ass."

"And that was the last thing I wanted to hear. Somehow the idea of being saved by you pisses me off more than the idea of being killed by that guy."

"Ouch! Is that how you treat someone who just saved your life?"

"That's not my problem is it? I had the option to finish him and I let it slip by. I let him live on a whim."

"Yeah well now look at him, he's way stronger than any of us and we're surrounded to boot."

"Details."

"How are those just details?! We're pretty much dead! I shouldn't have come here."

"Why are you even here?"

Seph looked like he was about to retort, when Sanza finally expressed his irritation. He began to glow a brilliant shade of red that continually darkened. His red aura flashed brightly and flared wildly, dancing all around him like a firestorm. It caused pebbles to rise off the ground and tore up the grass in the clearing. It lifted all debris within a five foot radius and they all hovered around him, reacting to the strength of his energy. And in response to the increasing power his body changed, it grew more muscular and more lithe, a form capable of both grace and impressive strength and speed. His red fur grew darker in shade moving from bright red to the colour of blood. Sanza snorted as he finally let his power relax.

"Oh great, he can transform to boot," Seph said, bringing down the hand he'd used to shield his eyes from the light show.

"What's his power level now?" I asked, beginning to stretch.

Seph stared at me incredulously. "You're not seriously thinking of taking him on are you?"

"I can take you can't I?"

He looked slightly irritated by that statement and said, "Well my power level is only 1000 units higher than yours and I can't use energy among other things. This guy here is fully combat capable and with a power level of 20,000. That's way above our level Rikku, you're not beating him no matter how you look at it. With a power gap this wide there's nothing you can do!"

I finally finished my stretches and stood up, bouncing on my toes. "Maybe for you. I wouldn't write me off just yet."

Seph growled in frustration.

"Have you got a better plan then?"

He eventually sighed and said, "No."

I snorted. "Figures."

"I still don't think this is a good idea."

"That's irrelevant. It's the _only_ idea."

Throughout all this Sanza was pacing, sizing us up and also using the conversation to gauge our relationship and through that our team work. No doubt about it, Sanza was as sharp as they came.

"You aren't going to tell your people to get clear?" I said, looking around.

His people were still surrounding us and in fact, most looked a lot more tired than before. It wasn't that they wouldn't… it looked like they… couldn't…

And suddenly it all made sense. The sudden boost in strength, the second form being used now when it clearly had enough power to end things at the start, running to this spot and leaving the fighting to Shadah. Sanza had planned to absorb energy from his people once the fight was underway so he could use his second form. Everything he had done was for that goal, hurting Naya was just a bonus. So being so out of sorts when I ran into him wasn't just because of Naya… he was already in bad shape. The question was… why?

I studied the number of villagers.

"Oi, Seph scan the forest surrounding this spot."

"Why?"

"Just do it."

There was a silence broken only by the wind blowing through the massive leaves above us. Hiyori sat off to the side safely out of reach of anyone, nursing her injuries. Sanza's people sat or lay about in all sorts of positions, too tired to maintain their footing. And as for Sanza he paced simply watching, like some sort of wild animal undecided as to how to hunt its meal. In my mind it was clear as day, he wasn't just analyzing us. He couldn't attack right now because his people were nearby and a counter of any kind from Seph or me would kill them but he also couldn't afford to retreat. In a sense we were both on the defensive… for now. It was clear that the instant he found an opening, Sanza would kill us.

Seph's scouter beeped and I raised an eyebrow.

"There are tonnes of small power levels surrounding this spot. Oh and two are on the way here."

"Describe the two."

"Well one is about 2000 or so and the other is nearly 0."

 _That must be Kin and Naya…_

"I see… well it seems we have a problem."

Seph raised a barely visible eyebrow. "And what's that?"

"Somehow, the villagers Naya and I killed are here as well," I said looking at Sanza. "There shouldn't be so many left."

As I said this Sanza's red eyes flashed dangerously.

"Mind filling us in?" I continued.

He didn't say a word.

"I'm guessing that's why you were so tired, isn't it? You did something. Somehow you can bring the dead back to life."

Sanza stopped pacing and simply turned to face me, his focus never wavering. If he got the one chance he needed Seph and I were dead soldiers.

"Whoa are you serious? Frieza would make-"

"Forget about Frieza, Seph."

"Huh? Why?"

"Drop it."

Seph paused at the uncharacteristic amount of aggression behind my tone. I kept my eyes on Sanza so I couldn't see what he was doing, but knowing him he would be trying to study my face, read my expression. And he would be failing- through no fault of my own my face rarely expressed my emotions correctly. I could be absolutely livid… and smile without pretense. Reading my face was a useless endeavor, a waste of time, and all who tried to use that would get the wrong idea every single time. The only expression that was truthful was martial expression… your fighting style revealed a lot about you and there was something else that I had learned through my fight with Sanza.

He _knew_ I didn't have my heart in the fight. He was a good enough fighter to know this but he insisted on killing us all. What was he trying to kill us for? Self-satisfaction? There was no way one as skilled as Sanza did not notice that the times we traded blows none of them had killing intent. He had been too weak to hurt me and I hadn't been inclined to hurt him. He _knew_ this. There was no way someone who could plan all this didn't know.

"Oh, that's Naya!"

Seph's voice brought me out of my thoughts, but again I kept my eyes on Sanza who was still silent. There was the sound of someone landing behind me but I kept my eyes forward.

"Welcome, a little late don't you think Kin?"

True enough, Kin's voice answered me clearly. "I think I did good considering the circumstances."

"And why did you bring her here?"

"Who Naya?"

"No, _Frieza_."

There were sheepish noises from behind me. "My bad," Kin said. "Well, I brought Naya cause she asked me to. She said you needed her."

"Not in that condition I don't. Take her away."

Seph put a hand on my shoulder. "Oi don't you think that's a bit harsh-"

"And you get lost too. Take Hiyori away as well and get the ship started."

I saw Seph staring at me with the usual cold look he got when he was offended. "Rikku, you're going too far. Both with what you're planning and how you're talking to everyone."

"Well, I'm _sorry_ civility isn't the first thing on my mind right now."

He sighed and just turned away. "Oi, silver hair. Let's go."

"Don't call me that."

And one by one I heard the sounds of feet leaving the earth, energy being shunted to lift weight into the air. Except for one, that would be Seph. Displaced air followed, then dust and finally… silence.

"Sorry for the wait Sanza," I said. "Now, why don't you tell me the real reason you haven't attacked until now?"

Sanza widened his stance and raised one hand, tucking the other at his waist. In response, I shifted my weight to my toes. It was a very imperceptible movement that only people who fought regularly noticed and had led to many trash thinking themselves my equal in combat only to be proved wrong.

"I have a more interesting question," Sanza said. "Why don't _you_ tell _me_ , why you've not been using your full power?"

"How is that your concern?" I countered, frowning.

"Says the one who asked first. No matter. All will be revealed once this fight begins," Sanza said with a smirk. "After all, the only true expression is martial expression."

"At least, when we kill each other there was one thing we agreed on."

Sanza's smirked disappeared. "Enough talk!"

He charged.

* * *

 **Ok so that's a wrap. I don't have much to say here except if there are any questions, just PM me. No questions about future plot. I'll ignore you.**

 **Also, I'm posting power levels only as necessary. For example, Hiyori's power level after fighting Shadah would be pretty meaningless if I included it. She's clearly incapable of further combat. No point measuring what isn't going to be used. I decided this because I thought of if I wrote a chapter with a lot of different characters fighting making this list of power levels would become pretty inefficient. SO...**

 **Rikku: 4000**

 **Naya (True power:5000)**

 **Kin:2750**

 **Seph:4000**

 **Sanza (Energy Absorbed):** **6000**

 **PS: -When Seph said his strength was a thousand units higher than Rikku he was referring to Rikku's previous power level of 3000. Even with equal power, Rikku is faster while Seph is stronger.**

 **-Naya used her full power against Shadah unconsciously which is why she did not power up. It was a gradual increase as the fight went on until she eventually crushed his face. Before you ask, yes Shadah was still stronger however his hesitation made him react slower to Naya who had none at all. As a result she always struck first despite Shadah being faster. Also Naya was hitting him with extra powerful attacks aimed to deal specific damage. Note she mostly aimed for his jawline. Had they been the same power level Shadah would have been knocked out with the first blow. Why? Blows to the jaw deal direct damage to the brain. The jerk of the neckline slams the brain into the skull. It is a testament to his strength that he withstood so many. Taking such extreme damage wore Shadah down until he could no longer resist the force behind Naya's final killing blow.**


	9. Chapter 8

**Wow, chapter 8 so soon after chapter 7? We love you Richard! And to ones who didn't add no homo I know Tae Kwon Do, Muay Thai and a few other stuff from various martial arts that I borrowed. Don't try anything funny or I'll break something precious to you. But I'm sure no one's thinking that and I'm just being paranoid. Isn't that right? Ok So I reposted it cause after reading this for myself I felt like the fight was to short and simple. So I'm fixing that so you can also get a better feel for what is happening and get a more interesting match up. Everything else is relatively unchanged.**

* * *

 **Chapter 8**

Sanza was powerful. Ridiculously powerful. So strong was he, so fast was he I couldn't strategize or think. It was just action and reaction one after the other at speeds far beyond anything I was used to.

 _I'm going to lose!_

Hit! Dodge! Counter! Dodge! Counter! He missed! Strike!

Sanza didn't so much as stumble. A flash! My world rocked. I was thrown back into the tree root I'd hit previously.

 _Cmon movemovemove!_

I leapt skyward just as Sanza obliterated it with a flying kick. He turned to glare at me as I tore through the air in an effort to get away and disappeared. I swerved left just as he reappeared in my flight path in the middle of an axe kick that would have been certain death if I hadn't turned just then. Sanza caught my foot before I could get away and dragged me back one handed. He raised his other hand above my spine but I kicked his nose with all the strength I could muster. Immediately, both his hands flew to his nose on reflex and I instantly kicked into gear.

My aura burst to life as I zoomed away as fast as I possibly could. My chest was heaving, my breathing was heavy and my muscular control was shot. I was trembling so violently I could barely control myself.

 _That guy is a beast! I can't touch him!_

A sound next to me! I turned to my right and a black fist filled my vision! _Genpo!_

I kicked the air behind me and leaped clear in an explosion of speed just as a crimson blur blasted by and carved a giant hole in one of the mile wide tree trunks. I shot past a tree and grabbed a hanging vine as I zoomed by. I stopped flying and let the vine slingshot me back toward the spot Sanza had crashed into. I turned in midair as something moved in the smoke and smashed into it feet first. The strength of the attack created a rush of air that cleared the smoke enough for me to see…

 _He caught me!_

Sanza had stopped me with one hand and grabbed one of my legs with the other!

He grinned. " **No more running."**

I aimed both palms at him and fired a barrage of energy blasts straight at his face. He made no effort to block them and simply punched me in the gut. That single blow knocked me so far from sensibility for a second I couldn't sense anything… no colours, no sounds, no sights, no feelings… All my five senses shut down. My world did not exist.

When they were up and running again I found myself lying in a deep trough of earth. Dust filled the air above me. My body ached as if it was made from bruises first everything else second. I struggled to get out as fast as I could.

 _Can't let him catch me again…_

My body would not move. The only response I got was pain so great it brought tears to my eyes. I couldn't move. I'd taken too much damage from that single blow.

 _"With a power gap that wide there's nothing you can do!"_

"Shut up, Seph. I can take him."

Even through my hazy vision, I saw the figure that blew all the dust aside with a simple gesture.

"Talking to yourself? I must have hit you too hard," Sanza said with a smile.

I could barely breathe. I tried once more to move and it didn't work, pain was my only reward.

Sanza walked down the trough and knelt before me, pulling me up by my neck to his face level.

"You should have run away the moment you saw this form," he said seriously, his red eyes flashing.

"If I did… you would have… gone after the other ones. Not like I was fast enough anyway…"

He smiled. "So you noticed."

I couldn't muster the energy to speak and didn't bother answering. Right after everyone left for the ship and Sanza attacked I had been outclassed. Speed, strength, energy output… all were leagues above anything I could achieve. I was pushing myself just to stay alive much less fight back and he'd been taking things slowly as far as I could tell.

 _Is this what it would be like if I fought Vegeta? If I fought Frieza?_

"Tell me how did you know it was you I was after?" Sanza asked.

He was genuinely interested, his expression was one of mild curiosity. He had me where he wanted me he had the time to find out whatever he wished. And I also needed more time, it had only been about a minute since everyone left for the ship. I needed to buy them at least nine more give or take.

"Martial expression…" I replied. "You were feeling out my skills when we fought… and disguising it as your wish to kill me. None of your blows had any intent to kill…"

I could barely keep my eyes open. Dark edges swirled around my vision… I would collapse soon.

Sanza frowned. "It seems I was much too obvious."

"Even now, you're doing it…"

Sanza seemed to think for a moment and then looked back at me.

"You're right I was feeling out your skills," he admitted. "I plan to consume you."

I was so out of it, I didn't much care that he'd just said he was going to eat me. My mind had long since stopped thinking… my body was failing me at this point. It could take me no further…

"My true name is Veridia. I am this planet," Sanza said. "All Veridians and all life on this planet are me. Even Shadah is me but he is weak and useless, a failure of myself. I plan to replace him with you for reasons best kept to myself right now."

No wonder he didn't react when he saw Naya return with Kin. He had never liked Shadah… and no wonder he'd been able to bring back all the villagers we killed… they were all part of him. The planet, the people, the animals, they were all one being. Well more like a perfect symbiosis than being one being. It explained a lot but a lot of it was meaningless to me. All I wanted was for those idiots to leave this planet. Until I saw Kin's ugly gray box of a ship leaving the atmosphere I had to buy more time.

"No response…" Sanza asked with a smug look. "Well… not much you can say to change this anyway."

He picked me up easily with one arm.

"Now, we have places to be and things to do. Once I finish with you I'll deal with your friends next."

 _Kin's Ship_

Kin was rushing all over the ship, getting controls ready while Seph was left in charge of watching the ladies. Naya was still unconscious and Hiyori had withdrawn into her own little universe where no one and nothing existed but her. Discomfort was clear on Seph's face, he had no idea what he was supposed to be doing. Rikku was the entire reason he was here and now he was going to leave him. As for Kin, he'd just been charged to help Rikku and Naya and here he was having to leave one of them behind. Both were torn as to what to do.

A low hum started up underneath their feet as the engine purred to life. Finally Kin walked over to the two seats at the wind shield and inserted both his and Hiyori's pendants into two slots. He sat in the chair on the left and prepared to lift off when a bloody hand landed on his shoulder. Kin jumped with a yell.

"Where's Rikku?"

Behind him Naya had woken up and was the one holding his shoulder. She had a disturbing look in her eyes.

"He said to-"

"Screw what he said. We're going to get him. We are not leaving without him."

At this point Seph decided to save Kin. He crossed his arms and said, "Naya as much as I hate to agree with him this was pretty much the only way to ensure the rest of us make it out alive. Someone had to stay behind."

Naya glared at him. "What are you even here for?"

The question irritated Seph. "I came here because of him."

"This concussion must be worse than I thought. Just a second ago you were talking about saving yourself."

Seph frowned. "Well he told us to leave…"

"And what is he your god?" Naya spat.

Kin was horrified at the turn the conversation was taking. "Guys…"

"No! He isn't!" Seph shot back visibly angered now.

"So stop bringing up that excuse then!"

Naya swayed dangerously off balance but caught herself on the seat next to Kin. "That dumbass can't do this alone, not as he is now."

"And what can _you_ do?" Seph countered. "Have you looked in a mirror lately?"

"I'd ask you the same question but considering that skin tone I doubt you saw anything even if you did," she fired back. "But I bet you would see a coward if you could."

"I came here to _help_ you guys! Stop being such a-"

"We don't need that half assed kind of help."

Seph was finally so mad he stopped talking and just glared.

Naya didn't wait for him to speak again. "I'm getting off."

Kin stood up. "Naya I don't think this is a good idea…"

She continued limping to the door and pushed the pad to open it. Then she stopped, turned and looked at Kin.

"That's alright," she said. "I'm not known for being smart. I'm going back to pick up my brains."

And then she left, wounds, dried blood and all.

Kin rubbed his head in frustration. "What am I supposed to do here? I keep her here she'll kill me later. I let her go Rikku'll kill me later if we survive to begin with."

Seph was fuming to himself and ignored the outburst completely. Hiyori was still in Hiyori land where nobody else existed, the very definition of spaced out. Given her injuries, Kin wasn't expecting anything from her. Nobody knew the right course of action to take.

Kin bowed his head. "What do I do…?"

 ** _Rikku_**

"And this is the Kaloa tree," Sanza said. "The seat of my power, the embodiment of my strength. And before you think of blowing it up, the energy of this planet flows through it. If you can't hurt me, you definitely can't touch the tree."

He had flown me to this massive tree with glowing leaves and set me down at its roots. I still couldn't move properly but the pain had settled down to a dull ache. It had taken a few minutes to get here what with Sanza having to be extra careful with my battered body. Kin and the others should have had more than enough time to take off by now but I still hadn't seen the ship leave the atmosphere. What were those idiots doing?

Sanza sat before me and crossed his legs, placing one hand on the ground. Slowly, I felt something… a sort of tickling in my head. It began to intensify until there was a strong buzz in my head, as if my brain was vibrating in my skull. It wasn't painful but I could barely stay conscious. I didn't know how much time passed when I heard someone shout my name…

I wasn't quite sure I heard anything. The buzz was so strong I could hardly tell the difference between what was in my head and what was real. And I was sick of it. I turned over and kicked Sanza in the face and the buzzing stopped, probably because he lost concentration I didn't much care. I stood up as Sanza wiped the sandal print off his face and walked off toward the ship.

"Just what do you think you're doing?" Sanza called after me.

I didn't answer. Honestly, I didn't know. I had just become so sick of being so docile and calm and logical, I wanted to go home. Home was currently debatable but I was tired of dealing with all this… Sanza, Frieza, Vegeta… They were all not to be trusted. Trying to find out who was trustworthy was becoming such a pain, dealing with Sanza was such a pain, it was like life was out to piss me off. I'd kept my temper well until now, but I was slipping. And that served to annoy me further because I was tired of fighting, of arguing, of planning… I just wanted to sit somewhere and rest. Forget everyone and everything. Maybe if I fell asleep Sanza could do whatever he wanted, I'd be in dreamland and never wake up.

I reached the edge of the clearing the Kaloa tree was in and paused. And then I frowned.

"I see a familiar face," I said blandly. "You didn't listen to me."

Naya's battered and bloodied face smiled at me. "It's fair. You didn't listen to me either."

The grey in her hair had been completely soaked with blood such that it all looked reddish brown.

"You have a concussion," I added. "Common sense dictates you at least get rid of that if you were going to ignore me. How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Two."

"No I can't even raise my hands up," I said. "Can you even see right now? How did you find me?"

"I just followed the glow…" she answered.

"You're not making any sense, is this the concussion talking?"

She raised her right hand and pointed skyward. I followed her finger to look up at a rapidly darkening sky. It was practically evening and the leaves of the Kaloa tree shone so brightly they released a calm and even glow that painted the night sky a very slight shade of green. I couldn't believe it was evening. _I've been fighting for a day straight._

"Such a memorable sight," Sanza's voice cut in. "Two beaten warriors no longer able to function. Barely conscious failures. But only one has the skills I'm looking for."

I looked over my shoulder and saw him walking towards us. He looked amused slightly, his mouth lifted in a crooked smile. I was so detached at this point I didn't really care what that meant. I turned to face him and sank to my knees.

He paused in surprise.

"I'll do anything you want, even be your slave. All I ask is that you let this idiot go," I said flatly.

Sanza looked stunned. Clearly, it had been the last thing he expected from me.

"She's not very intelligent you see so I sent her with a pair of caretakers but she's escaped them. Don't worry about her coming back again, her head was broken before the concussion. She won't be smart enough to come back. Basically she's stupid, forgive her stupidity."

Sanza stared at me for several seconds with a look of disbelief on his face.

"No you won't send me away again," Naya said. "I told you to get serious. If you were serious we wouldn't be in this mess. Why are you still afraid? I've never listened to a coward and I'm not about to start now."

"Shut it you," I replied without moving. "The opinion of an idiot matters little to me."

"Insulting me isn't going to make me leave you alone."

"You're suddenly making very sensible arguments for someone with a concussion. Where are these speeches coming from?"

"I don't know and I don't care. I feel numb right now."

"You know that's not a good sign don't you? Your body's shutting down for good. Go back."

"No."

"LEAVE DAMMIT!"

I was angry now. I was furious. Did she not know what I was trying to achieve here? I was the only one who could hold Sanza here, none of us could even touch him. And she was here spouting some nonsense about leaving together. Life wasn't so simple! You couldn't eat your cake and have it! It was either we all die or one of us dies. And heck this way there was a chance I could live as Sanza's servant and possibly run into her again. This was the best available option!

"Sanza!" I growled. "Extra obedience plus service included if you make her leave! Hell, I'll even throw in bootlicking if you take her as an escort!"

Sanza looked completely undecided. He had no idea what to make of this situation at all. I looked over my shoulder and saw Naya taking her fighting stance despite her injuries. Her face made it clear what she was planning to do. She would fight Sanza even though she knew she was going to lose.

"I have another question," Sanza said slowly. "There is clear dislike in every word you've spoken since this girl arrived. If you hadn't been working against me a while back I would've thought you were enemies."

"So what?" I said.

"This doesn't really matter to me but I must ask, if she offends you so much… why are you crying?"

I kept my face straight. "Trick of the light."

"No I can see it pretty clearly in this lighting."

"There are dirt crystals on my face."

Sanza closed his eyes. "Whatever. I only need you but she seems to have every intention of interfering. She's not listening to you and there's no guarantee she won't just come back."

"Sanza please…"

He opened his eyes and they flashed red. "I'll kill her."

He blazed by me so fast I couldn't even see him move. There was a loud thud and I turned behind me to see Naya pinned to one of the trees at the edge of the clearing. Sanza had punched a hole in her. I stared at it, almost curious as to what it looked like. I was vaguely aware I wasn't quite myself but that leapt to the back of my mind. I couldn't really feel anything. It was like my soul shut down.

Naya made several pitiful attempts to remove Sanza's hand from her insides. As she did this it seemed the numbness was starting to wear off. Her discomfort seemed to increase until she screamed and tried to kick him away. She was too weak to make him move. Sanza simply pushed deeper. The screams intensified and then eventually weakened and finally stopped. She went limp and Sanza retracted his fist. As he turned toward me an all too familiar flame burned in my chest, like I wanted to crawl out of my skin. I was shaking violently, so violently it was like I was having a fit. I noticed all this with an air of detachment, my focus was elsewhere. My focus…

 ** _Kill him!_**

I shot forward and slammed a kick into Sanza's face. He didn't even flinch and reached out to grab me.

 ** _Break him!_**

I caught his hand by the thumb and twisted it. For the first time Sanza showed signs of pain and fired an ultrafast punch in retaliation.

 ** _HURT HIM!_**

I dodged it and drilled my own punch into his throat. Sanza choked and stepped back.

 ** _MURDER HIM!_**

Everything blended into white noise. Background. There was only the red creature before me. I forgot its name. I forgot my name. Everything was consumed in the fire in my soul. I knew only pain.

 ** _It's so painful…_**

An ache in my heart so strong it was like my whole body throbbed with it.

 ** _If it's so painful…_**

I stepped toward Sanza who had fallen to his knees clutching his throat. He stared up at me in shock.

 ** _RETURN IT HUNDREDFOLD!_**

 **Sanza**

He clutched his throat in disbelief. He had just been hurt by someone several levels below him in strength. Sanza could sense energy and the boy's had risen, even so it had not risen by so large a margin that it rivaled his. The boy was still far weaker than himself.

 _Then how?!_

Sanza shot to his feet determined to prove his superiority just as the boy attacked again. Sanza caught his front kick and booted him so hard he zoomed backward and crashed into the base of the Kaloa tree. Before the dust finished rising Sanza already had a fist slammed directly into the centre of the mess.

And his fist hurt.

With a howl of pain Sanza withdrew his fist to see tree bark from the Kaloa tree embedded in it, blood oozed from the wound. And the boy leaped out of the dust with a long piece of wood and smashed it in deeper so hard the wood broke. Sanza roared in pain but even before the splinters began to fall he aimed with his other hand- but his enemy was already stepping on it. Sanza's eyes widened in surprise.

They shouldn't have.

The boy snatched two large splinters out of the air and jammed them into his eyes and then kicked them deeper. Sanza screamed and staggered back. His head felt like someone had stuck two knives in them!

 _IT HURTS! SO PAINFUL!_

Sanza smashed his fist into the ground and a concussive wave rippled through the ground and the air, knocking everything away from him. He ripped out the wood in his hand with his fair hand and then shot beams through his eyes that incinerated the wood stuck in them. Immediately he turned to face his opponent to find him already in the middle of a punch.

Sanza caught it and prepared a beam in his free hand and nearly missed the glow in the boy's fist. The hand opened and a huge wave of energy drove him backward right into the very tree he'd kicked the boy into. The charged energy he'd been preparing blew up in his face and blasted him deeper still.

 _I can't keep up…,_ Sanza realized. _How is this possible?! How is he outfighting me?!_

Sanza looked up and saw just what he was up against standing outside quivering as if naked in a snowstorm. Bronze skin bruised, curly hair messy, face bloody, what little clothes he had left torn- a walking injury stood outside. But in its brown eyes he saw what he was really fighting with. Those eyes were like the eyes of the blind, those brown eyes had no spark, no shine, no depth, no life. But they were looking at him, they were looking at him so clearly it was as if they weren't looking at _him_ but at his essence. Like the boy couldn't see him, and at the same time he could see more than any normal person could ever see. It was highly unnerving.

Where there had been no danger, Sanza felt a rush like he never had before. He was in the eyes of the predator, his destroyer, his natural enemy. Under the night sky, bathed in the light of the Kaloa tree Sanza had made an enemy he had no idea how to beat. There was a palpable pressure that wasn't there before. The very idea of attacking the enemy now made his skin crawl…

 _He was never fighting me seriously,_ Sanze realized. _Even without his full power he was never fighting me seriously! His skills! His knowledge! His ability! They're leagues above anything I can do! Even with this power gap, if I give him an inch he's going to kill me!_

Sanza dared not move, trying to buy time to think. He wasn't sure he had anything capable of dealing with his opponent. Now that being stronger wasn't enough Sanza had no idea what to do, he had no experience fighting someone so dangerous. Utterly unpredictable, deadly but lacking rhyme or reason in his attacks. The boy literally responded to anything with deadly force and every single thing he did was meant to wound if not outright kill anyone weaker than him. Like those attacks using the wood peeled from the Kaloa tree.

 _Had our strengths been equal I would be dead right now. This power gap can only afford me a few mistakes at best. One too many and I'm finished._

How to take him down? Sanza had no idea how. The boy's style was completely different. He moved differently, he attacked differently. There was a viciousness and brutality that had not been there before. To say he was fighting a wild animal would be accurate but it wouldn't quite capture the feeling. This was something completely different; it had an unstoppable quality he couldn't quite grasp. His senses warned him that he was going to die and his body was responding to it. He was afraid.

The boy gave a grunt and his aura burst to life around him, a massive pale blue blaze that flickered wildly as if trying to return the world to dust. Sanza was scared… but HE WOULD NOT BACK DOWN FOR ANYTHING! He was the planet and the planet was he! This was HIS home! HE WAS HIS OWN POWER MULTIPLIED BY THE LIVING THINGS THAT EXISTED HERE! HE WAS GOD DAMMIT!

Sanza blasted the remnants of the Kaloa tree off him in a huge burst of crimson energy. His aura was a stormy red blaze that pushed the very air away from him and burned the few leaves that got too close to ash.

"JUST YOU TRY ME BOY!" Sanza cried. "YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE UP AGAINST!"

He got no response. Indeed, the enemy didn't even look capable of speech at the moment. Both simply stood for several seconds watching each other the way two predators do, searching for an opening, a sign of weakness, anything. Or at least Sanza was, the boy looked like he couldn't tell up from down and yet he was looking at one spot.

Sanza's head.

The Shadow Grotto was a mess now. The Kaloa tree had a massive burrow at its base and there was no more grass, only dark earth illuminated by their auras and the Kaloa tree leaves. The two warriors faced each other, unmoving even as their aura's flashed and crackled with power. The wind was reacting to the raised energy levels and picked up in strength, blowing more and more violently around the Grotto.

Sanza stepped forward…

And his enemy was on him like wildfire.

 _Kin's Ship_

Kin sat at the controls and maneuvered the ship through the sky. Through it all Hiyori sat on one of the beds behind him still lost in whatever thoughts she had. Seph was still fuming and had gone to stand next to one of the beds at the back of the ship. Kin was still debating whether to go back or at least he had been. Now he had decided but he needed to know if the others were with him. A clear night sky greeted him through the viewing screen, dotted with stars and the canopy of trees underlying it all.

It was pretty, but he was in no mood to appreciate it.

"I'm taking us back."

Silence answered Kin's announcement. He considered repeating it and then stopped, they'd heard him. He knew they had.

"I was thinking the same thing," a soft voice said.

Kin looked over his shoulder to see Hiyori looking at him. The vacant expression was gone although it was clear that she wouldn't be going anywhere except dreamland after she had said whatever she had to say.

"I was wondering how to say this to you Kin," she continued. "But I think we should stick with them. I can't quite say why but it's something I just want to do. You understand, don't you?"

Kin nodded. Indeed he understood, despite being forced to join RIkku and Naya by that strange figure he knew what Hiyori meant. There was something being around those two gave him that he didn't have before. Whether it was companionship, fun, happiness or something entirely different Kin didn't know. But he personally, wanted those two near him. He couldn't leave them. It didn't feel right.

"That leaves you, Frieza Force," Kin said. "What's your decision so I know whether to kick you off this ship or not."

"The name is Seph, not Frieza Force," came the reply.

Kin turned gaze back to the view screen. "I'll remember it when you get that my name isn't silver hair. What's your decision?"

Seph sighed. "I don't even know why I'm saying this but let's go get them."

Kin placed his hands on a joystick that sprung out of the armrest of his seat. He jerked it forward and the ships engines purred in response. The canopy flew by beneath them, the leaves rustling from the wind generated by the ship.

"So how are we going to find them?" Seph asked.

"We follow the light," Kin said with a nod at the viewscreen.

A faint green light was visible towards the north. If anything, something was happening there that was worth knowing about. Chances were, that was where Rikku and Naya were.

"Why the light?" Seph asked.

Kin explained his reasoning and Seph nodded. "Ah I get it."

For the next few seconds, there was silence in the ship as Kin flew towards the light but it only lasted so long. Kin had questions and Veridia being such a large planet it would take the ship a few minutes to get to the light.

"So Seph, you're in the Frieza Force too?" Kin asked.

"Obviously."

"So how do you know Rikku and Naya? I haven't quite got a grasp of them yet," Kin said, keeping his eyes front. "You could maybe help me understand them better? You seem to know them after all."

"I would say something, but Rikku tells me I'm wrong," Seph said, taking a seat on one of the beds. "Personally, now I'm not quite sure if I am or not."

Kin's right eye twitched. _So even his friends don't quite understand him…_

"I see…," Kin said. "And your jobs in the Frieza Force?"

Seph thought about it. "Well, I'm just one of the middle class soldiers. I wear the standard uniform, I go on standard missions. I have no specific teams or leaders. I have led a few lower class soldiers of course but they were never anything special.

"Rikku and Naya are both in the Saiyan Army of the Frieza Force. Although, I don't know if that thing is some kind of sick joke on Frieza's part."

Kin's interest was piqued. "How do you mean?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Seph snorted. "No matter how you look at it five people don't make an army no matter how powerful they are. It's like he's rubbing the loss of the Saiyan Race in their faces."

Kin unconsciously raised an eyebrow. "Just five?"

"Yeah," Seph said. "Rikku, Naya, General Nappa, Prince Vegeta and Raditz. Ah nevermind, the last guy's dead."

"What happened to him? They're all Saiyans?"

"The name should tip you off. Saiyan army. Also, apparently Raditz went and got killed somewhere. Danger comes with the job, the weak have no place in the force unfortunately."

Kin didn't know how to feel about this revelation. _Perhaps it's tough for the soldiers too,_ he thought.

He remembered Naya's words. _"Very few soldiers actually like him, you know? It's mostly join the strong or be crushed for most."_

"I wouldn't go feeling sorry for those guys if I were you," Seph warned.

Kin blinked. "Huh?"

"Every single one of them is dangerous, even those who don't look it," Seph said. "The Saiyan Army is a specialized squad known for taking on suicide missions. Frieza says it's because he respects their skills and strength but Rikku suspects otherwise. He told me so himself, he's sure Frieza does it on purpose. When Vegeta first brought him in Rikku had a power level of 300 and was still capable of taking down soldiers stronger than himself. Naya was at 400 and could do much the same. Repeated suicide missions are what have made them so powerful. If something took one of them down it would have had to be someone or something truly strong in every sense of the word. The Saiyan Army is second only to the elites."

"Wow you make them sound like royalty or something," Kin noted.

"Well they have a Prince so why not?" Seph said. "Prince Vegeta is the last of the Saiyan royal line apparently. Explains why he's so retardedly strong."

"And you Seph?"

For the first time since they started talking Seph suddenly seemed unwilling to speak. "Oh me…"

The ship rocked violently. Kin finally paid attention to where he was flying and saw a massive tree just below. Its leaves shone with a brilliant green light. This was clearly the source of the illumination he had followed. Next to the tree two figures coated in bright auras were clashing violently at impressive speeds. The ship was rocking because of the high winds generated by the aggravated energies solely around the two opponents. An extremely localized hurricane.

"Oi Seph come see this!"

Seph rushed over to the view screen to take a look. His eyes widened, "Holy- is that Rikku? He can fight like that?!"

The pale blue aura surrounding the Saiyan was so huge it was impossible to miss him. He was a non-stop hurricane of fists and kicks. There were no pauses. Attack, defense- everything flowed flawlessly from one to the other. It was clear who was dominating this fight. His opponent was struggling to keep up.

"Oh my god he's like a monster…"

Kin had to agree. There was no trace of humanity in anything Rikku was doing. There was no doubt that he was trying to kill his enemy, every attack looked like attempted murder. Kin could hardly tear his gaze away from it, the action down below wasn't just a display of violence and rage. It radiated it. It caught him in a frenzy and made his blood pump faster as if he was the one locked in deadly combat. If he were to describe the emotion in his heart right now, this combination of fear and horrified excitement, he would call it 'Flying on the Wings of War'.

"I see Naya down there!" Seph shouted. He pointed wildly. "There!"

Kin tore his gaze off the battle below and followed Seph's wild gestures. She was really there and she looked in really bad shape!

"Normally I would go but I can't fly," Seph explained. "You'll have to go."

Kin didn't waste a second to ask questions. He pushed the button for auto pilot and ran to the door, pushed the pad to open it and dove out. He skirted the fight by a wide margin, he didn't want to get caught in the winds and get pulled into the fight. He dove straight toward the fallen Saiyan girl.

When he finally reached her Kin nearly crashed into the ground. She had a hole punched right through her stomach! He wasn't even sure she was going to make it. He found himself wondering if there was any point in taking her back to the ship but he picked her up anyway. Just as Kin got to his feet a red blur went flying past and there was an explosion somewhere behind him. Kin looked in the direction the blur had come from and saw Rikku looking at him.

From afar it was clear that he looked quite mad. Up close it became that much clearer. There was no light in his eyes and his face was so twisted with anger it didn't look normal. And above all, there were tears streaking down his face. Kin didn't dare pity him neither did he dare to make any moves. It was highly unnerving up close.

Kin's knees started to shake for no reason. He was starting to sweat too. It was like Rikku was deciding whether to kill him or not. Even though he didn't look quite capable of coherent thought at the moment.

"It's me," Kin found himself saying. "Kin Dura. I'm just taking Naya to the ship."

For several seconds Rikku didn't move- and then the red blur shot by again. A blindingly fast kick knocked the blur off course and Rikku was after it like a shot.

Kin sighed in relief and hefted Naya carefully before taking off for the ship. The minute he got in he moved Naya straight to one of the beds and laid her down.

"Oh crap what happened to her?" Seph said, joining Kin at the bed side.

"I have no idea," Kin said, stroking one hand through his hair in frustration. "And I don't think we have anything that can fix something like this."

Seph didn't answer. He was too busy searching his armour for something.

"What are you looking for?" Kin asked. "Do you even have pockets in those tights? Also why does the Frieza Force armour include a body suit anyway?"

"Why are those last two important right now? Take a look at the situation would you?" Seph retorted. "Ah found it."

Seph pulled out three small red balls from his body armour. "These are stasis pills. They keep the body stabilized and prevent injuries from worsening. Soldiers use it when they're particularly injured and have a long journey back to base. We can use these for now."

He popped one into her mouth.

"Doesn't she need to swallow it?" Kin asked hestitantly.

"No. Not all injured soldiers may be in the condition to swallow so they dissolve on their own."

Naya remained unnaturally still save some very shallow breathing and nobody said anything for several seconds. Then Kin addressed the elephant in the room.

"What about Rikku?"

"He'll be fine."

Both Seph and Kin looked down. Naya was struggling to breathe but she was awake.

"You should rest," Kin said. Seph said nothing, obviously he was still angry with her.

"It would have been bad before… But he'll be fine now. All we need to do is pick him up… when this fight ends…"

Her eyes were half closed and she'd gotten herself a mortal wound… but Kin had never seen so satisfied a smile.

 ** _Rikku_**

My target leaped clear as I smashed a hole in the ground where he had just been. He turned on me in an instant! But I could see him… three punches and an elbow! I blocked the first three blows with my left hand and punched him in the throat with my right before he could begin the fourth. The moment I had space I leapt up with a spinning back kick to his chest.

 ** _I'LL BREAK YOUR BONES!_**

And I kicked him again and again, whipping him with my legs. I felt his body give with the power of each strike. My feet sank into his torso like a knife sinking through butter. I could hear the creak of his bones as I struck over and over. He recovered enough to block a few and then attacked with kicks of his own. I ducked underneath one, swayed out of the way of another and punched him in the jaw all in one motion.

He took three steps back and immediately struck again. I spun around the blow and kicked him in the jaw and then hit him with a hook across his face. He pressed forward and I drove three front kicks into his stomach. He didn't slow down and struck with a combination of fast punches and kicks.

 ** _FOOL! I DOMINATE THIS FIGHT!_**

Before he finished his third hit, I slammed his nose with my palm. I felt the cartilage give ever so slightly beneath my palm.

 ** _PUNISH!_**

I whipped my right leg up, infused with energy at the soles in a single thin line! **_KUSANAGI!_**

I kicked him in the neck with all my strength! I saw his face, his expression twisted in some sort of emotion. Blood and saliva flew from his mouth. I saw all this right before he got blown into the ground and bounced into the air from the force of the attack. I was already after him before he recovered in mid-air.

 ** _HIRAMEKI!_**

My flying kick blasted him higher into the air with a loud boom! **_GENPO!_**

I flashed behind him with a single step just as he turned to punch me mid-flight. I slapped the punch down and crashed the back of my wrist into his chin. He was thrown backwards so hard he left a shockwave.

 ** _YOU WON'T GET AWAY!_**

I zoomed above him and raised one leg for an axe kick. He tried to block it. I hit him so hard I felt his bones bend and we both crashed into the ground. Dust and rocks exploded in my face and shoved me toward the big glowing tree. The enemy was already following me with a fist launched.

 ** _NONE OF THAT!_**

I slammed into the tree with both palms, kicked his hand aside with one leg, twisted and kicked him in the chest with the other. As he staggered back I pushed off the tree and ducked underneath his guard. An uppercut, two jabs and a spinning back fist had him corkscrewing through the air! I immediately flew up, spun and then kicked him in the centre of his chest. He spat up blood as my foot sank into his body and in an instant he was smashed into the ground yet again.

 ** _DIE!_**

Even as I had kicked him the energy was already charging in my outstretched hand. I crushed it and fired!

A huge wave of blue energy blasted my opponent into the ground and kept him plastered there. Without pause he came at me through the wave! I blocked his punch but he instantly followed with kick! I was thrown several metres back and crashed into the ground. I didn't feel it.

 ** _PAY HIM BACK!_**

He was already bearing down on me! I spun out of the way and slammed a back ridge into the back of his neck. He turned to counter me but I smashed his cheek with my elbow of the same arm. It made him spin too far.

 ** _WOUND HIM!_**

I stepped forward so hard I crushed the ground beneath us and punched him in the body! For a moment amid the floating rocks his pain was clear- **and I loved it!** And then he was gone- blasted into the distance from the force of the blow. In an instant he was back a tornado kick incoming! I flew up above and came back down with an axe kick! He stopped my blow and shoved me higher into the air already following with a heavy cross cocked back! I sidestepped him and kicked him off to the side! I felt my feet sink into his body! Saw him spit blood for just a slight second. Dodged the hook kick! Punched his leg!

The blow spun him over in the air just as I turned and slammed a back kick into his body!

 ** _FLY!_**

A heavy shockwave rippled through the area as he shot backwards through the air and crashed into the glowing tree. He stayed stuck in the tree, hanging listlessly.

 ** _HIRAMEKI!_**

In a blast of energy, I kicked him right through the tree! I flew through the hole and watched him lying in the dirt. He was saying something. I couldn't hear him.

And he let loose a huge wave of energy! I zoomed upward . He appeared before me with a double hammer fist! I blocked it! It still knocked me down hard enough to make a crater in the earth! I didn't feel it.

He landed before me and leaped forward! Before he could cover so much as an inch I shot to my feet and met him head on! Punch! Kick! Dodge! Counter! Sway! His punches were fast! His kicks were fast! Barely visible flashes! I could barely see the exchange! But none of that mattered! He was pressuring me! Pushing me back!

 ** _WHY THE HELL IS HE TAKING THE LEAD?!_**

Punch!Kick! Block! Counter! Sway! Weave! Counter! My whole body was vibrating with the shock of hitting and being hit! He knocked one of my counter punches aside and kicked me in the gut! I flew back toward the tree! He appeared behind me!

Before he could do anything I turned and kicked him in the chest! He folded around the blow. Instantly I spun and kicked his jaw skyward! His body was open now! Two jabs to the body and a round kick to the ribs! He came back with a hook- trying to stop me. I slammed a spinning back kick into the centre of his chest before he could come close! He went flying backward but I was after him before he could even get three feet away.

I flew into him with a barrage of kicks aimed at whatever I could find! Whatever was closest I hit! I felt his bones give more than they ever had during this fight! I felt my kicks sink further and further into his body! I wasn't just hurting him at this point. I was killing him.

He stopped himself mid-air and caught one kick. A shockwave flew out from the impact. He dragged me forward for a punch but I slipped it! I caught his only free hand and punched his temple once! Twice- he shoved me back and fired a super-fast wave! I leaned to one side and fired an energy blast into his face! The energy wave flew by me and his head was jerked back by my shot. I lunged forward with a tornado kick! He dodged underneath me. We both turned and hit at the same time.

We traded shots at speed! Fast! Powerful! The very air around us vibrated with the force of each blow! Back and forth back and forth! We zipped through the air! Blocking! Dodging! Countering! He was losing ground. He couldn't keep up with me. I could see it… the look on his face…. I knew what it meant… he didn't know what to do. He had lost and now he was aware of it.

 ** _NOW FOR THE FINISH!_**

On the defense! He rushed forward with three punches. I dodged two and blocked the third but it was a powerful blow! I was blasted right back into the glowing tree! I didn't feel it. He was already after me! He threw a heavy punch but I dodged it. He was already following up! This was a barrage! Immediately I started to block them! But he was getting too fast! I couldn't see them! I couldn't see his fists! Too many!

 ** _THIS CAN'T BEAT ME!_**

I raised both hands and slammed one elbow into his fist. Surprise on his face! But the punches were still coming! I started to hit with my elbows over and over! I felt his knuckles splitting with every strike. He would punch and I would elbow it all at speeds faster than I could see! Punch! Elbow! Punch! Elbow!

Finally he fell back! His arms were quivering and his knuckles were swollen!

 ** _NOW!_**

I shot a side kick into his chest that launched him off into the distance! **_GENPO!_**

Already behind him! I kicked him to stop his momentum, kicked him in the head so hard he turned around and then sent my foot flying into his jaw at brutal speed!

He shot off into the sky far above the trees! **_GENPO!_**

Behind him once more! In the air far above the forest below, the night sky was clear, my targets flaming red aura was gone, the tree leaves below no longer glowed. I was aware of something else in the sky nearby. I was aware that it was paying attention to me. It didn't matter. If it attacked me I would kill it.

The enemy was turning to look at me even as he rose up. My hand was held behind me three pale blueballs of energy were charging in it and spinning violently around each other. He made no effort to move.

 ** _SPIRAL CRUSH CANNON!_**

I crushed the energy in my hand and fired it! My biggest energy attack yet! A large beam that spun like a drill! An attack so huge it completely swallowed my target from sight! I felt the force vibrate to my entire body! The wave smashed the enemy into the ground and pinned him there! It ate into his body! Into the earth! It ate and ate and ate until there was nothing left to consume! And then it blew up.

The explosion of energy illuminated the world in bright pale blue light. I didn't care. Was he alive?

I flew down to the hole in the earth to check. It was dark and I couldn't see clearly at first but I had destroyed a good chunk of the forest and moonlight shone through. There he was lying at the bottom of the hole, surrounded by rubble and ash.

 ** _Killhimifhecomesoutkillifhecomesoutkillhimifhecomesout! Killkillkillkillkillkillkill!_**

He wasn't moving. He wasn't moving at all. His chest wasn't moving. His arms nothing. His eyes had the empty look that the eyes of the dead possessed. I had killed him.

The fire burning in my soul flared in dissatisfaction, in anger that this was all it took! I felt like screaming!

 ** _THAT'S IT?! THAT WAS YOUR BEST?!_**

I blasted the glowing tree in a fit of rage.

 ** _SCUM!_**

I went on a rampage. I blew apart trees! Pounded the earth! Sent blast after blast careening into the surrounding forest until I was surrounded by fire as far as the eye could see! A tree fell in my path! I blew it up! A stray piece of bark hit me. I blasted it with a massive wave of energy! I crushed! I burned! I cleaved! I screamed!

And slowly I felt the fire fade away. Not the one without, but the one within. Like I had somehow transferred my agony to the forest around me. As the fire died within my body, the all-consuming burning sensation began to fade, other feelings finally had room to express themselves. The first was pain. All the hits I had taken that I had ignored in the heat of my rage. I had taken a lot of damage. My neck, my back, my stomach, my arms that I had used to block and my legs that I had used to kick all hurt.

My muscles… every single one _burned_ like I had literally set them on fire. I overshot the limitations of my stamina. In my anger I had ignored the pain, the price of my overexertion but now it was fading away and I was becoming aware of how much damage I had done to myself. My limbs trembled and I fell. My chest heaved, and seemed to ooze pain with every motion. I had kept fighting even when I could barely breathe because of how fast the pace of the fight was. I had even taken the initiative in spite of this. My lungs were a wreck. I could feel three knives in my sides with every breath.

As I lay there, sound finally returned. I could hear the crackling of flames, the sound of trees the size of buildings falling to the ground. Sound that had faded to white noise during my anger, was back. I felt empty, so very empty. It wasn't the good kind of empty, when you were a clean slate ready for something more. It was the empty that you felt when you knew you had lost something. Something that mattered to you.

I could feel cold tears on my face. Even when I lost my senses, I was aware…

 _You're a real idiot RIkku. If you had fought like this from the start you could have done something. What was all that talk of slavery? You were just scared weren't you? Scared of yourself. Isn't that why you're always so withdrawn? Isn't that why you're always in control of yourself? Why you always know what you're doing? Because you're scared of how you'll react when you let yourself run free?_

 _You're a monster and you know it. The worst kind. You can't even trust yourself to do things right and so you plan everything from A to Z and keep a close eye on that temper of yours. Because you know what happens when you snap… you know what happens whenever you let yourself go even when you're having fun. Every single time you've relaxed even a little… even when you were in a good mood … somebody got hurt… something got destroyed… something went wrong…_

My thoughts continued to punish me long after my actions had. But they were true statements. They were facts. I knew them to be facts. I did not lie to myself. What other option did someone like me have? I could never truly enjoy myself unless I was alone. And those were the reasons why. I didn't like people to begin with, and this reaction I had made it several times harder to get along with anyone. The moment I let down my guard bad things happened.

 _How many people have you hurt? How many have you killed? Not the ones dictated by Frieza but the ones you did willingly? You don't even know do you? The reason why you're so good at fighting is obvious. You're good at hurting people both those you hate and those you like. That's a monster isn't it? An indiscriminate destroyer, that's what you are. You may not be the worst one out there… but you're bad enough. But you knew that didn't you? It's why you're so good at staying 'calm'. Because you know what happens when you don't… But it's not just people. Look around you. Those flames… you did it. Because you weren't satisfied with the fight you burned everything around you. You didn't even consider Naya's corpse did you? It's probably ash by now… isn't that right?_

I probably would have cried if I wasn't so dried up, if I wasn't so tired. I had destroyed what I was trying to defend far more effectively than Sanza ever would have. And where was he? A broken corpse lying in a hole in the earth. I hadn't even cared what he needed me for so long as everybody was gone and now look at me.

 _The worst kind… I know I am. I know… and she knew… So why does she force me to do the things that hurt everyone? When will she learn that this is not some sickness… it isn't some disease… this is who I am… this is why I don't like fighting anymore…_

 _Why did the one who taught me control… make me lose it…_

 _Why didn't she listen…_

 ** _Kin_**

Kin whistled as he surveyed the wreckage. "He really messed this place up."

Potholes pockmarked the entire clearing. Leaves and trees burned. A large hole had been burrowed into the earth and Kin didn't want to look and see what was in it. The little he'd seen from the ship view screen had been enough. The finishing blow had been done right in front of the ship. He'd seen the ferocity of the final blow up close. He didn't want to see what the enemy looked like after that. If anything, he was slightly afraid Rikku would wake up again in a fighting mood.

Next to him Seph was also looking around for any more threats. "Let's just hurry and get out of here. This whole planet is basically a forest, everything is going to burn to death."

Kin picked Rikku up and placed one of his arms across his shoulders. He began to walk toward the ship. He had landed it near the giant glowing tree because it was near the centre of the clearing and safest from the flames. Additionally, Rikku had blasted it and it was relatively intact which meant it would be the least likely to fall down. Hiyori was inside it, asleep despite the ruckus. Naya was in a coma at this point and there was no telling when she would wake up again.

Kin laid Rikku on the bed opposite Naya's and sat at the controls again just as Seph finally stepped in and closed the door. Kin guided the ship into the air and rose higher and higher above the ground until everything looked remarkably small. He then pushed the accelerator button and the ship zoomed into space. Kin did not think about what happened down there and thus he said nothing. He had no idea what to say, it had been a lot to digest. Kin was a Saiyan and he loved to fight but that had been something completely different from anything he was used to.

"So where are we going?" Seph asked after a while.

Kin felt like pulling his hair. _Does this guy not realize the implications of what just happened? Rikku could basically murder us all if he hasn't actually calmed down._

"We were going to look for Frieza actually," he replied despite his misgivings. "They mentioned an Outpost 244 or some such place but I have no idea where that is."

"Oh so it's Frieza they need to see," Seph said, sitting on one of the only free beds. "I know exactly where he is."

Kin raised an eyebrow. "Where's that?"

Seph gave him what was clearly supposed to be a meaningful look. Kin had no idea what meaning it was supposed to contain. Thankfully, the message was clearer than the expression it was delivered with.

"Set a course for Namek."

* * *

 **I can hear it already. No matter how you slice it you just made a God-like character Richard! He killed a being with a power level of 20000. Nothing you could say could possibly justify this. Those are the people using purely power levels to judge this fight. As a martial artist I can in fact explain this match. I try to make things as clear as possible cause not everyone who loves martial arts actually knows and understands what goes into a match.**

 **Ok so, Rikku when he finally lost his cool didn't win just because he was angry. He is in fact far more skilled than he lets on and this was what Naya was referring to at the beginning of this story when she said he was holding back. He knows several dangerous techniques and his true fighting style is actually completely offensive. Using those techniques all of which are varied he becomes very difficult to stop and Sanza had no idea how to counter him. Additionally, the anger did not take away from his experience. Rikku is a soldier who has been on repeated suicide missions, he has experience fighting against odds deliberately stacked against him. This difference in experience manifested itself as a few seconds difference in decision making that allowed Rikku to continually strike quickly. Basically while Sanza was thinking of how to attack, Rikku was already in the middle of his own attack. How was Rikku hurting Sanza? At the beginning of the fight he wasn't, however note the majority of Rikku's strikes were aimed at the body. What does this accomplish? Those of you who are martial artists know : Body blows serve to weaken the power of your opponents strikes and reduce their stamina. It's like an investment that pays off later in the fight. Rikku mostly aimed for the face and the body with the majority of his blows aimed towards the body. The face for maximum damage and the body to weaken his enemy. This combination eventually brought Sanza down to his level where he was eventually killed. Why didn't I say that this was Rikku's strategy from the start then you ask? He's supposed to be out of his mind with rage, I fail to see how he could put together a coherent plan in that mental state. Remember he was so mad he forgot everything else including his own name. The only thing he knew at that point was "destroy enemy".**

 **As to the killing blow, as you may have guessed Rikku's attacks are designed to generate maximum force with minimum effort. This will be explained later though so i won't bother saying it here. But basically the attacks you saw above, Hirameki, Kusanagi and the Crush Cannon (which has variations mind you) are all capable of generating force greater than Rikku's actual power level. The smart ones and the scientists among you already know why this is so... to the rest you'll just have to wait till it's explained.**

 **I can't explain anymore without revealing plot so I'll drop that there. In any case, power levels.**

 **Rikku( True Strength): 6000**

 **Sanza 2nd Form :20000**


	10. Chapter 9

**Ok so this is the beginning of the Frieza arc. And hopefully one more if things work out the way I want them to. Have fun peeps.**

* * *

 **Chapter 9**

 _Planet Namek, Pappuriko village, 3 weeks later_

The sky was clear green, the three suns shone brightly and illuminated the open village well. White sphere shaped huts placed so as to form a circle with a large open area in the middle. The blue grass was healthy and vibrant, and grew everywhere on Namek. The green skinned people of Namek went about their daily chores in loose clothing meant to allow air to flow freely and help keep them cool. Some minded their farms, others went to hunt for meat and a few remained as guards for the village. This setup was the standard all across Namek. An agrarian planet to be sure.

But here the guards were even more tense than usual. The normal villagers didn't know but the guards had been told and no one knew that more than Jepu. The news had come in a week ago… that some strange aliens had landed on the planet and began ransacking vilages. How long they had been there nobody was really sure. What was important was that they had no qualms about hurting people. They knew about the Dragon Balls and that was what they were here for. When they began to attack nobody really knew. All of a sudden one of the farmers from a village that was attacked came back barely alive and spoke of alien invaders. The guards kept it hush hush and only the village elder was aware of what was going on.

And somewhere along the line the members of the Dragon clan had raised an army of warriors to fight the enemy.A few guards had gone to join them. Jepu sighed. He had no interest in such nonsense. What could an army so hastily thrown together achieve? Sure something had to be done and quickly but rushing into things half assed is a guaranteed loss. It was common sense. People made mistakes and therefore to be successful all actions had to be planned well. That army no matter how well intentioned was doomed to failure. It was unfortunate that some people had to experience pain to learn how to think properly.

Jepu sat at the very centre of the village with his legs crossed. He sat there every day when he wasn't training. As captain of the guard he had to make sure he was always on top of things and that he was always ready for combat at any point in time. He'd been there for most of the morning and he would be there for a long while yet. He had heard how monstrously powerful the invaders were and he could not afford to rest too easy. It would have been amazing if they knew about the enemies beforehand and simply wished them away with the dragon balls but not many knew about the dragon balls. Such an attack had never been expected. No one was supposed to know about the dragon balls.

A brief breeze passed through the village and ruffled his clothing. Jepu was wearing a simple purple outfit tied at the waist with rope. Over that he wore a white robe with no buttons or sleeves. The outfit in question was sleeveless and loose. A shirt and a trouser all joined as one. On his feet were simple canvas shoes. Namek was all about the simple life.

For the next few hours that was all Jepu did: Sit and think. He was still alert, his focus remained unwavering, but his thoughts he allowed to roam. Day after day he had done this ever since he became captain, never changing his routine. Almost like a machine. Even though he had news of invaders a week ago he had changed nothing. There was nothing to change. He could not fight them rather he would defend his village as best he could. He would wait for the enemies to come to him; that was the sensible thing to do.

"Excuse me captain."

It was one of his men that he'd had on patrol ever since the news came in.

"What is it?" Jepu asked.

The guard looked slightly uncomfortable. "We found a space ship of some kind. Recently landed too according to Pep."

"Were you able to identify who was in it? Is it someone we should be preparing to destroy or someone who could be an asset?" Jepu questioned. "Better yet someone we can ignore completely- less work all around…"

"Well that's the thing… we don't know."

Jepu frowned. "Take me there."

 ** _Kin_**

Kin smiled as the ship finally touched down. It had been a stressful journey made especially stressful by the three injured Saiyans on board. Especially those two…

Kin looked over his shoulder as the back of the ship. Hiyori was sitting cross legged with her eyes closed trying to rely on meditation to speed up her healing. Seph was sitting on the floor with his back against the wall fast asleep. And no wonder he was, because the last two members of the misshapen crew were both lying on bunks practically comatose thanks to the pills he kept giving them. Rikku and Naya were out cold. Naya demanded the most attention because she had a hole in her stomach that they didn't have the supplies to fix. After setting the course Kin had bandaged them all up as best as he could but being honest they were only alive because of those pills Seph had on him. After three weeks they had used his entire supply though. The plan was to find help on Namek before the effects of the latest pills ran out and they woke up. As it was, if her pill wore off Naya would never wake up. She would die pretty much on the spot.

Kin got off his seat and shook Seph awake. Seph didn't so much as open his eye lids.

 _Yeesh this guy is hard to wake up… we've got a limited amount of time here…_

Kin shook him harder. This time there was some reaction but he didn't wake up. It took Kin thirty good minutes to wake Seph up by which time his patience had worn quite thin.

Seph yawned and stood up. "We've arrived?"

Kin ignored the question. "Where's your scouter? Can you use it to find a place we can get some medical help?"

"Hmm oh yeah. Yeah I can," Seph said, reaching up to click the side of the device.

Numbers flickered across his screen in some weird pattern Kin was unfamiliar with. Clearly the device was scanning for something.

"I can't actually find a place but I can scan for power levels. Then we'll just ask whoever we find for help or how to get help."

Kin nodded absently, he was busy watching Hiyori meditate at this point. _I wonder how she's doing… she hasn't said a word since Veridia…_

He wondered if perhaps she was suffering again. At the thought he frowned, he was sure they'd been through this… that she was fine now. Hiyori opened her eyes and Kin quickly averted his gaze before she caught him.

"We've got a cluster of power levels to the East. None of them are particularly high so even if we're wrong we should be safe," Seph said, after a few seconds.

"Ok that's great," Kin said. He looked at the two comatose Saiyans and then asked, "So how are we going to do this? Do we take them with us?"

"I'm an idiot and even _I_ know that's not a good idea," Seph answered, shaking his head.

Kin gave him a blank look. _Ah, so you know…_

"What's with that expression? C'mon I'll go out and you stay with these three."

"You can't fly though…"

"Oh yeah," Seph said, scratching his head. "Well you go then. I'll stay here and watch them."

Kin resisted the urge to shake his head and walked out the ship. Once outside he immediately shot into the air and swerved east, shunting pale blue ki. As Kin flew through the green sky he suddenly realized that Rikku, Naya and Seph had never once called it ki. It was always energy, energy, energy. Well perhaps ki was a unique concept even though it referenced the same thing. It was odd how they needed scouters to sense energy as well, if he had known that Seph was just going to scan for power levels and make a guess he wouldn't have bothered asking him to check for places they could get medical help.

Ah well… at least they were safe that was something to be glad about.

Once again Kin found his thoughts drifting. The unknown person that had displayed such power on Veridia, was it here too? Was it watching? What was its interest in Rikku and Naya? It was all very curious. Also the fact that Frieza was on Namek… what did he want from here? Usually the Frieza Force cleared out the planet and then had it sold… Frieza himself never came into the picture- until now. Kin was inquisitive and naturally he wanted to know these things. They had gnawed at his thoughts for the entire journey and they were no less troublesome now.

Also Rikku and Naya's own goals were still unclear. They had never said why they were turning on Frieza neither had they said much of anything about their motivations or ambitions. So much was still unclear about them. Who were they? What did they believe in? What did they fight for? Where were they from? Could they be trusted? The fact that Kin had no clear answers to any of those questions bothered him. All he knew was they were soldiers in the Frieza Force and they were Saiyans. He'd tried to get some answers out of Seph but the dark skinned soldiers answers were very haphazard to the point where Kin doubted Seph even knew what he was talking about. And the fact that despite all this he actually _liked_ them was quite disturbing to him.

Up ahead Kin could see a cluster of oddly shaped white huts with spikes of some kind. _That must be the place Seph scanned._

Kin could sense several relatively low power levels. A few were comparable to his own back when he was on Veridia, after recovering from his injuries he had grown more powerful though.

 _Probably guards._

Kin took care not to fly right in and instead landed right outside the settlement and then walked toward it. Right when he got to the gate two green skinned natives dressed in robes leaped in his way, blocking the entrance. Not that there was an entrance now that Kin was actually paying attention. The settlement was literally just a cluster of the odd huts spaced out across a wide area. There was a large space left in the exact centre but not much else.

"Stop right there! Who are you?"

Kin raised his hands. "My name is Kin Dura. Nice to meet you."

The guards looked at him like they couldn't quite believe what they'd just heard.

 _Come to think of it, Rikku and Naya looked at me like that too when we first met… I wonder why this keeps happening._

Kin mentally shook himself. _Pay attention._

The guards seemed to have recovered themselves and demanded, "What business do you have here? You're not from Namek clearly."

"I need help. We just landed on this planet and two of my friends are in serious need of medical attention."

The two guards looked at each other clearly not sure how to deal with him. Kin wondered why that was… it was a simple as treating them or pointing him in the right direction wasn't it?

"One of them is dying," he added to make it more serious. "We can only keep her stabilized for so long."

"Well boy sorry we don't trust-"

"Well bring them then."

The guard who was speaking paused mid-sentence and looked behind him at the interruption. It was a short young Namekian dressed in plain white robes and brown canvas shoes. Kin lowered his hands and asked, "Ok but they're in the ship. I have a friend there who's watching over them."

"Elder Shinpa, it is not advisable-"

"Eh who cares," the younger Namek interrupted. "I've got a good feeling about this guy. No one that girly could be bad!"

Kin got a tic going on his forehead. _That's your reason..?_

The guards looked like they also disagreed with that line of reasoning. "But-"

Shinpa's jovial expression turned very serious in a matter of seconds. It was a gaze Kin was all too familiar with. It was the same look he'd seen in Rikku's eyes back on Veridia when he'd stood up to him. At that moment, Kin knew without a doubt that Elder Shinpa, despite obviously being a child, was not going to be refused. His eyes looked completely merciless, ruthless… there was a vision in them of a future he wanted and he wasn't going to allow anyone to get in his way.

"Y-yes sir at once!" Both Guards knelt at Elder Shinpa's feet.

Suddenly all smiles once again Shinpa turned to Kin and said "So lead the way."

 _What strange people have I just come to for help?_

 _Another part of Namek, Frieza's Space ship, Zithis Quarters_

Zithis was looking out the window at his men camped below. The excess troops had been placed out on the Planet while the important or more powerful men had a place in Frieza's Space ship. This separation according to power and rank… he didn't like it. Frieza's whole system irritated him. The only reason he was here was because he knew he stood no chance against Frieza and he'd rather not die. Zithis was tired, very tired of all the killing. He was good at it because he was strong and, unlike most of the soldiers, trained. He was well aware he was considered a general alongside Zarbon and Dodoria. He was also aware that he was actually stronger than those two, stronger even than Ginyu. He had to be considering where he was from…

"Reminiscing are we Zithis? I'm more than willing to help with that though whether you'll survive or not is up for debate."

Zithis didn't turn. "I believe you failed then. You will fail again now."

A laugh. "Such confidence. I was holding back you moron."

Zithis didn't smile. "I proceeded to outperform you at every turn. The results speak for themselves."

A light snort was enough to show what his visitor thought of that.

"So did you come here to lose an argument or did you have something important to say? A message perhaps?"

Movement. Footsteps. The thud of someone sitting on his bed.

"I really want to kill you…"

"I thought we finished with that part of the conversation."

A sigh. "Those two are here. On this planet we're to take them out."

Zithis raised his eyebrow reflexively. "We?"

"Yes. You and me make we. Yes 'we'. Is the boss high putting us together? Probably. He certainly looks the part."

"You do realize there is no way to hide a conflict with them? Is this the best place? Also working with _you_ of all people?"

"Oi that's kind of annoying. I'll seriously kill you."

Zithis ignored the retort. "They're considerably more powerful than Frieza as well. What chance do we have?"

" So are we. Don't stiffen up like that. You know what I'm talking about."

"I'd rather not have to resort to something like that to win. I don't need such a sad victory."

"Well seeing as removing them helps Frieza you're kind of still doing your job."

Zithis frowned. "Is that a joke? Once Frieza gets wind of how powerful I really am he'll view me as a threat and try to remove me. He did that with the Saiyans after all. I can't do both jobs."

"Then kill him too."

"Clearly you've not even thought this through."

There was a laugh, wild and slightly psychotic. "Hey that was the order. It's their fault if they weren't clear on how to deal with Frieza. Their fault for not checking if they could have both. Their fault for not seeing that they would have to sacrifice Frieza to defeat those two."

"Then again the order never said anything about killing Frieza," Zithis pointed out. "So who are they really sacrificing?"

He gave a small laugh. "They're trying to sacrifice me then."

"Oh dear you figured it out."

"You don't sound very sorry."

"I'm not."

There was silence in the room for a while. Zithis was honestly not surprised, this was how things worked with them. Then the other occupant spoke again.

"The bosses seem to believe you know where he is. Void Sethra."

Zithis glared through the window. A red glow began to emanate from him. "Choose your next words carefully…"

"Well you were the last to see him."

"The beginning fought the end. Whereas the beginning could always begin again even the end must have an end."

"Very poetic. But I must ask is there a beginning without an end?"

"You think I would save him. They think I saved him instead of killing him, is that why they're doing this? You seem to have forgotten who it is you're dealing with."

Zithis' voice had gotten hot with fury. He glowed even more brightly and the faint lines of tattoos could be seen on his face.

"No. They may have but I haven't… you know the job. Do what you want from there…"

Zithis finally turned to find his room empty.

 ** _"Ashura Root Zithis..._** "

 _In a cave somewhere on Namek_

She was sitting at a stolen table on a stolen chair using stolen equipment to monitor the Frieza Force. It had been this way since they'd arrived on Namek and even long before that. It was how they had learned to survive. Survive until they grew strong enough to hold their own in battle with the monsters they had come to discover as enemies. Enemies that made Frieza look like a child let loose on a playground rather than an emperor who terrorized an entire galaxy.

"They're onto us," she announced.

A shadow stirred in the corner of the cave where the grass mats were.

"They can't honestly be hoping to engage us here can they? I thought they wanted that Frieza to maintain control of this galaxy. If we fight here everyone is sure to die."

"Including Rikku," she said.

"This is bad. Maybe they don't need Frieza anymore," the shadow in the corner said. "Either way we can't afford to engage here. We have to be careful with so much at stake. I don't know if this is just a feint or whatever but we should retreat for now."

"I'm sure we have some time till they find us though," she guessed. "What do you think we should do with it?"

There was a silence as the shadow thought about it. For several minutes the cave was quiet, the only sound being that of her light breathing. The shadow eventually came to a decision.

"I'm going to teach Rikku something he's going to need very soon if he's going to make it out of Namek alive."

"He's not strong enough yet," she objected.

The shadow laughed. A light and carefree laugh. It was clear he had no doubts as to Rikku's ablity as a fighter. Well it was no surprise considering who his teacher was… not even the Prince could hold a candle to that man in terms of martial arts.

"Don't you worry about that," the man in the shadows said. "Knowing Rikku, he'll make it work."

 ** _Kin_**

When the guards saw Seph Kin was very grateful for Elder Shinpa's presence . They had both suddenly attacked the dark soldier, leaving Kin torn as to how to react. To his credit Seph had managed to endure the onslaught long enough for Shinpa to bring his men to heel. Thankfully, Seph had also been able to force the fight back outside the ship to avoid wounding the injured any further. The soldier had used sheer momentum to pressure the two guards and make them give up ground.

Now Shinpa was looking at Kin very closely. "I didn't think you would be with the Frieza Force," he said. His voice was calm and even, betraying nothing of his thoughts.

Seph was standing at the entrance to the ship while Kin stood in front of Elder Shinpa. The two guards were behind the young Namek still tense and obviously itching to finish what they started.

"These people aren't with the Frieza Force," Kin said. "I came here gunning for Frieza's head actually. They agreed to help me."

The Elder smirked. "How convenient. Do you honestly expect me to believe that?"

Kin frowned. "You're right it doesn't sound very convincing. IF I were lying it would be a tad bit too convenient that I'm gunning for Frieza."

"Would it help if I said Frieza tried to have us killed?" Seph volunteered.

Elder Shinpa frowned at this. "What proof of this have you?"

When Seph had told Kin Frieza was here he should have known that being soldiers of the force meant no one would willingly help Rikku and Naya, that meant they wouldn't help him or Hiyori either. She was still inside watching over the two worst off Saiyans trying not to exert herself too much.

"None," Kin said. "Look if we were really still with the force we could've just gone to camp with Frieza. I believe they have healing pods."

Kin looked at Seph to confirm and the dark soldier nodded affirmative.

At this Shinpa grinned wolfishly, "I figured. Let me see your friends."

Kin was so surprised that he almost didn't hear what the diminutive Elder said. The thought had already occurred to Elder Shinpa! This Namekian was very cunning clearly. He'd gone along with his guards just to see what Kin would say in his defense and also how truthful he was. Suddenly Kin felt he was being tested in several different ways right from when he showed up at the Namekian village.

 _This guy… he's way ahead of me… I can't read his angle at all…_

Seph turned and shouted into the ship. "Hiyori we're coming in. Don't worry no more fighting."

Kin beckoned them into the ship. Once inside the guards stood next to the doorway watching the proceedings while Kin and Seph stood nearby the bunks the two Saiyans were laid on. Shinpa stood directly between both bunks. He first faced Naya with a blank expression.

"You the girl with the bruises," Shinpa said.

"Hiyori stepped forward. "How can I help?"

Shinpa shook his head. "No I don't want your help."

Ignoring the confused look on Hiyori's face Shinpa held out one hand toward her. Green energy flowed from his hand and enveloped Hiyori's entire body. Once the light faded Hiyori was as good as new, almost as if she'd never gotten injured in her life.

Hiyori bowed low. "Thank you sir."

Shinpa nodded once all the while his gaze had never left Naya. "I'll start with this one first. She looks the worst off. It will take a few minutes."

Kin was honestly quite surprised at Shinpa's words. Naya had a _hole_ in her torso and he said _minutes_.

 _You gotta stop being surprised Kin the universe is a big place_ , he chastised himself. _If you're gonna be running with this crew from now on you gotta get used to these sorts of things._

Shinpa stretched out both hands over Naya and began to work. His green ki enveloped Naya's body and made the entire interior of the ship glow green. It pulsed and undulated as he worked, concentrating over the hole in her body and swirling around it like a whirlpool of power. As this happened Naya was visibly healing, Kin could see the hole closing up and her bruises disappearing. There was a faint cracking sound as her bones set themselves correctly and a grinding as they regrew where they had been destroyed. Kin was watching with a kind of horrified fascination. He didn't want to know what the squelching was…

After about five minutes Shinpa stopped and observed his work. Where before she was a battered mess Naya looked absolutely pristine… it was a truly stunning ability worthy of praise. For a second Kin wished he could do the same. Next to him Hiyori was watching with a far away look in her eye and Kin could only guess at what she was thinking. Seph on the other hand…

"Wow that's amazing…" he muttered.

If Shinpa heard it he gave no sign and simply turned to Rikku, rasing his hands once more. Once again green light illuminated the ship as Shinpa worked over Rikku with his ki.

"This one is actually worse off than I thought…" Shinpa muttered as he concentrated his ki at various places on RIkku. "Most of his bones are broken, one arm is dislocated… knees are but a memory. It's almost like he dove off of some insane tower and hit the ground repeatedly until he couldn't dive anymore. His wrists have turned to mush, his shoulders are shot… several of his muscles are torn. His spine has been deformed too… like he hit his back against something."

As Elder Shinpa listed the injuries Kin remembered every single situation in Rikku's battle with Sanza where he could have gotten those infuries. Kin suddenly realized that as powerful as he had seemed Rikku was just another person and fighting like that wasn't good for you no matter who you were. Was this really what Naya wanted from RIkku when she went after him?

It took about ten minutes for Shinpa to heal all the injuries. Once done he breathed out and said "It is finished."

"Thank you so much Elder Shinpa," Kin said with a respectful bow. "We needed him for when we go after Frieza."

"Hmmph," Shinpa snorted. "No need to hide it. You were genuinely worried for them, all three of you."

Kin rubbed his head. "Well I… uhhh…"

Hiyori looked off to the side and Seph just grinned.

"Makes me wonder what sort of people they are to command such care…" Shinpa said wistfully. "Ah well, what's done is done. Just one thing…"

"What is it?" Seph asked.

Shinpa pointed at Rikku. "He's awake."

"Huh?"

 ** _Rikku_**

 _The Root… is my survival_

 _"Rikku you're talented I'll give you that. I didn't expect you to be this much work to handle. Fantastic job!"_

 _Covered in bruises…_

 _"Sensei which part of that looked talented to you…?"_

 _"Listen.. you've got a talent for combat. Hone your instincts. To do that focus on the base of your power. Find the ki within you follow the flow until you find the root…"_

 _…._

 _Back to the basics, there are secrets to energy I haven't yet discovered. Abilities within reach that I never pushed for… the utilization of ki can still be taken further!_

 _"Sensei why do you make me call you sensei? Also why do you call energy ' ki'?"_

 _"It's a lot more than just energy Rikku. Ki is the breath of life… the breath of the universe that makes all things as they are… master your breathing and it will definitely help you master ki… Master your emotion along with your senses- that is the power of the breath… "_

 _"Sensei…. You didn't answer the first question…."_

 _Second the Sacral… to draw out my senses and gain understanding of my emotions…_

 _….._

 _Not enough there's so much more to learn. I can feel them in the ship. Kin is bored his energy is monotone and steady… Seph is sleeping his energy is very low and calm. He's not dreaming. Hiyori is also meditating, her energy rises and falls in an even rhythm… But it's not enough. I can still do more! How did I miss all this?_

 _"Rikku you're too focused on the fighting… you lose your temper too easily. You lack focus and it costs you many things in the course of not just battle but life as well… Look at Naya she's getting it…"_

 _"That doesn't matter to me. I just want to be strong. I want to be able to take what I want from whoever I want whenever I need it…"_

 _"Is that really it RIkku…? Or are you too shy to say what you really want to be strong for…?"_

 _"…"_

 _"In that case show me…Take responsibility for your own life and your own decisions."_

 _"More meditation…. Ugh…"_

 _"Your ki has grown greatly. You can see it shining within you. Follow it's travel… it reaches for the sun at your centre. That glow is your power. Ki is not your power it is simply the essence with which your power can be transmitted and manifest itself. Let your ki flow through this power, flow through your centre…_

 _This power is stubborn. You must not want it you must_ _ **will**_ it. _A decisive and authoritative moment barred by no inhibitions. Anger will block you, accept the anger in your soul, accept that it is part of you and assume responsibility for it and all other things. Your mistakes, your failures, the things that make your soul ache… It is your will that you will control them all."_

 _The Centre is my Power…. My will…_

 _…._

 _Not much has changed. Seph tried to train his ki again but he failed… Kin was watching. Hiyori was still meditating as usual. She hasn't stopped for days… I can feel Naya… her energy is so low….I'm powerful enough now that I can sustain myself just a bit… My ki has grown by contrast…. But there's still more…. I can do more…_

 _"Rikku… when I saw you, you defended Naya from me…. Do you care for her?"_

 _"Don't say disgusting things sensei. I did it cause I wanted to. I didn't think about is so deeply. I do what I want to do so long as there's no reason not to."_

 _"I see…"_

 _"What's so funny?"_

 _"You simply follow your heart…"_

 _"Sensei I'm gonna say it right now, that sentence is totally rubbing me the wrong way…."_

 _"Indeed, there are better ways to phrase it…"_

 _"Oh would you stop chuckling already. I'll seriously kill you…"_

 _"Begin Rikku…. Your heart is strong but you are unsure. Even now not only do you doubt that your heart is strong, you doubt you can be anything. You doubt your strength, your intelligence, your sheer potential… I can see it but you cannot. You are not sure who you are or who you're supposed to be… you can't even tell what you want from yourself…"_

 _"….."_

 _"Follow the flow of the ki within you past the roots, and beyond even your senses, reach past the power and look for the warmth… the green warmth of a verdant field… Search deep and wide…. Find it and let your ki flow through it… You say what you like, and do what you please… but there is underlying motivation isn't there Rikku? Would you disagree?"_

 _"First time you've asked me."_

 _"And the answer…?"_

 _"I don't know. I've always gone with what felt right."_

 _"This point in your ki is much harder to draw on than the others. It requires a reckoning with yourself… Rikku you used to be a fighter who cared only about himself but I see in you an understanding of what it means to think of others…. You may not have kindness quite yet… but you do have empathy… draw on that… feel the ki move through your heart along with the feelings of those you have come to know…_

 _"This is pretty freakin vague…"_

 _"It will come to you… just go with what feels right…"_

 _Beyond the Power lies the Heart, the Heart is my understanding of the lives of the living things around me alongside myself…_

 _"Remember Rikku, no matter how you behave you have someone who understands you… isn't that right Naya?"_

 _…_

 _Seph is angry. He's always angry. It's like he feels the world is just out to piss him off as much as it possibly can. He's seething about his failure to use ki. I could always tell when he was mad… but now I can feel it through his ki… Kin is confused about what's got into Seph. He can't even tell that Seph's upset… Hiyori has detached herself completely. As for Naya… she's empty… I pray she's not dying… or worse dead already…._

 _"You did well in sparring today Rikku… but I sensed hestitation in your movements…. What was the matter…?"_

 _"I didn't want to hurt you."_

 _"Is something wrong?"_

 _"I was losing my temper so I decided to ease off you and let you win."_

 _"…Rikku how long have you been doing this?"_

 _"I don't honestly know. It started when I removed Naya from… you know…"_

 _"Ah I see… you feel that your anger is wrongly aimed at me. You feel that I do not deserve to be the subject of your rage…"_

 _"Yeah kinda. I can't fight you like that, it wouldn't be right."_

 _"Sit. We will meditate."_

 _"Oh my God….."_

 _"Follow the flow of ki to your heart as we have done before… now look beyond that. Go further…."_

 _"There's a blue light. It's kind of soothing…"_

 _"You have found the point where your ki expresses itself. Your Throat. When we first found the point of Power within you we used your will to access it. Here we will use personal intention. You must say what you mean Rikku and only what you mean… do what you mean to and only what you mean to… the emphasis is control… regardless of what happens you must make up your mind to do only what you have decided to do. No more and no less. The key is discipline…"_

 _"Discipline is not my strong point."_

 _"Indeed, you are quite the wild child. However we are not referring to discipline in the traditional sense of obedience. We are talking about personal discipline whether misguided or not stick to what you decide. Do not waver. Let nothing distract you. Your anger has nothing to do with my teachings however there is no denying that it is there… Take hold of it and decide what to do with it without regrets. Do this in all things…"_

 _The Throat, the Expression of my ki through my intentions. I understand my intentions, I must go a step further and decide what I will do- and then do it. No regrets._

 _…._

 _"Rikku you've grown vastly more powerful since we first met. You are also more skilled than ever before. You have an eye for the situation."_

 _"Are you praising me because you honestly believe that or because I lost?"_

 _"Rikku just because someone is better than you doesn't mean you're bad."_

 _"Maybe so but it does mean I am nowhere near complete. I want to be the kind of person who can do anything he sets his mind to. As far as I'm concerned this is a failure."_

 _"You're a difficult child my friend…"_

 _"Tch."_

 _"Rikku… you are not wrong. However you must be objective about this, one man cannot master everything there is."_

 _"Oh you're definitely right about that. I'm picky about what I devote my time to. I said whatever I set my mind to not everything there is."_

 _"Even so someone with as wide a range of interests as you will find it to be too much. RIkku calm down and analyse… follow the ki…"_

 _"Are we really doing this here? Can't it wait till we get back?"_

 _"You can do it as we walk. I will guide your steps."_

 _"Tch."_

 _"Now this time we search for the point where your ki influences perception. An indigo well through which your ki flows and assists your sight… I believe you have a strong connection to this one. You have an ability to visualize and analyze, you are observant, able to perceive… imagine, think, dream and last of all reason…_

 _You know you are asking too much of yourself. You are able to see accurately what many refuse to see… you do not fear knowledge. Let this assist you… you cannot be the best at everything…. However what you can do is to use this ability to assist everything you do. No two people think alike. It puts a unique stamp on your abilities that no one can ever hope to match. And that is where true talent lies…"_

 _The 3_ _rd_ _Eye. My ability to see the world as it is and not as I wish it to be… Accept it and then control it._

 _….._

 _It's so clear now. I can tell we're near Namek. Everyone conscious on the ship is anxious except for Hiyori.I can feel my own ki moving in me, faint but even. I have it down now. Mostly… but before we land there is one more thing I can do…._

 _"Rikku I've taught you many arts since we've met."_

 _"Yeah and they've all got weird names. Really what planet are you from sensei?"_

 _"Some random planet not worth talking about. That's not the point Rikku. You are very withdrawn."_

 _"Yes I am. I hate talking too much and I hate people who talk too much. I also don't like loud people."_

 _"Follow your ki… no whining this time. We've found most of the various points within you that ki flows through. We have accessed them and your future utilization of ki will greatly depend on how you use these points. All users of ki possess them and use them to varying degrees whenever they utilise their ki. This final one is the most difficult one of them all. Find the violet aura within you… it is your Crown. The epitome of yourself… the ultimate you. The definite identifier of who you are… An existence that transcends the intellect…_

 _Ties will block you. Anything that hinders you, anything that blocks the acceptance of who you are deep down will block your access to the Crown. Rikku… who are you?"_

 _"What else can I say? I am who I am. What else is there? I'm not always a good person, sometimes I'm downright evil. I know. People like you believe I'm nice. I suppose I don't honestly know. The main thing is that I exist. The fact is that no matter what anyone thinks, including myself…_ _ **I am.**_ _"_

 _The Crown, the ultimate me… I have gained the mastery. I am._

 _"Everyone's crown is different. But you say, I don't know but I am. I exist therefore I am. Hahahahaha, I must say that does indeed fit you. Practical to the last. The phrase does capture the essence of who you are perfectly."_

 _…._

"Ah well what's done is done. Just one thing…"

"What?"

"He's awake."

"Huh?"

I opened my eyes and found myself staring at a ceiling. "A ceiling this ugly could only mean I'm in Kin's ship," I said flatly.

"Thanks for that, I feel so proud of my ship now."

"Looks like you're still as much of an asshole as you were before you went under."

That would be Seph. I sat up and looked around the room. There was a green kid between Naya and I. Kin, Hiyori and Seph were standing next to each other close to the controls of his ship and two green men were guarding the door to the ship. Their energy remained calm and relaxed… no not energy… ki. The guards were not hostile. I immediately dismissed them and turned my attention to the little one who was watching me with a blank expression.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"Does it really matter?" he asked in return.

I smiled. "No not really. I could care less about you."

The guards ki flared and without looking I raised a palm and released a solid pressure. They struggled to step forward and I knew without a doubt that they would not be reaching me. I was very much aware of the difference between their strength and my own. I had grown more powerful than ever and mastering the principles of my ki granted me further strength. If I fought Sanza right now I would win easily.

"You healed me," I said. "Thank you for that. Now we can get on with the plan."

Kin, Hiyori and Seph looked unsure as to what I was doing.

"What an ungrateful person I've helped," the little green man said with a smile. "He won't even offer to pay me."

I stood up and stretched my entire body, shaking out my limbs and just taking joy in how good it felt to be healthy and strong. I let the pressure on the guards die and they both fell over.

"I don't have anything to pay you with," I answered after stretching. "If there's something you want ask for it. If it doesn't bother me I'll let you have it. Otherwise don't expect any offers from me, I'm not a salesman."

"Hmmph I see," he said, straightening his robes. "Well it's simple. I want you to destroy the enemies occupying our planet. You are Saiyans I believe?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Now where did you ever hear about Saiyans?"

I was curious, I wasn't aware that we had a reputation outside of the Frieza Force. Not many people seemed to know about Saiyans except those Frieza worked with or those he sold planets to.

"Need you ask? How green are you?" the kid laughed.

"Oi. You're the greenest one here. Literally the greenest one here in every sense of the word."

The boy's expression quickly became serious.

"The Saiyans were a fearsome warrior race that roamed the galaxy raiding other planets for food, clothing and technology," he said. "Once they had all three they didn't stop as far as the stories go. Most tales recounting Saiyan wars with other planets spoke of how the Saiyans simply got more and more powerful with every clash until they eventually overwhelmed their enemies."

Something about that last statement gave me pause for thought but I decided to file it away for later. Hopefully I wouldn't forget when I actually had time to think about it…

"Wow our heritage is kind of… bloody…" Kin observed with a frown.

Seph folded his arms. "No shit."

"I want to use that power," the boy said. "I want to use that fearsome planet conquering power to defeat the invaders."

I laughed at that. "You clearly didn't think this through very carefully. We may be able to conquer planets over time but Frieza goes far beyond that. He can destroy this planet with a finger. His strength is far away from even us Saiyans. Maybe you don't know this but in the Frieza Force the Saiyan Army is far from the strongest. You would have been better off appealing to Zarbon, Dodoria or Zithis although they'd all probably kill you before you said a word."

He frowned. Near the controls I noticed Kin's expression, he looked betrayed and Hiyori just looked blank. Seph was nodding with a derisive smile.

"Elder Shinpa," one of the guards said. "This was never a good idea. Let us return to the village-"

"You lie," the boy I now knew as Elder Shinpa said. "You were planning to kill Frieza with the blue clad boy."

"No I said I would get him to Frieza," I corrected him, leaning back against the bunk. "Fighting Frieza is all his gig."

The Elder looked confused now. Since I woke up his face had been carefully blank but now his confusion was plain on his face for all to see.

"Then what is it that you're after…?" Elder Shinpa asked. "I don't understand you."

"Not many do," I admitted. "I'm here to find out why my pod was sabotaged. I'm here to find out who knew about it. I am here to find out if I'm a soldier in an army or merely a pawn in a board game."

Elder Shinpa nodded. It seemed he was starting to get the picture. I didn't put too much faith in that though, a lot of people seemed to get it and then completely misinterpret me.

"And if you're the latter…?" he asked.

Everyone on the ship looked interested in what I was going to say. Not that it was anything special really…

I grinned. **"Imma fucking flip the board."**

For a moment Shinpa looked genuinely scared of me for some reason but then his face was blank again.

"But first things first, the most important thing is to train," I said, looking at Kin. "As we are now, Frieza or no Frieza we're going to get destroyed."

I turned back to Shinpa. "We'll defend your village during our training however once we're powerful enough we'll leave on our separate missions."

"How lucky I am that your plans involve taking on the Frieza Force then," Shinpa said with a smirk.

I stood up again. "Indeed you are. Let's move people."

And just like that Kin, Hiyori and Seph started moving out. The guards looked like they wanted to argue but kept their mouths shut, Shinpa just watched me with the smirk still in place. As I passed by him I saw Naya lying on the bunk opposite mine and paused. Then I flicked her on the head.

"Ow!"

"How long were you planning on lying there you lazy bum?"

She rubbed her forehead and kicked her feet furiously. "Ow, so painful! Oh my god you said you wouldn't do that anymore."

"You said you wouldn't provoke me anymore. We're even."

"Rikku about that I-"

"Not the time or the place Naya," I said. "It's not important right now. I assume you heard everything."

She nodded, brown eyes turning serious.

"Then let's go."

I walked out the ship to join the others. There was the sound of Naya hopping off the bunk bed and then following after me. Shinpa and his men joined soon after.

I turned to Shinpa with my hands in my pockets. He was smiling at me for some odd reason. I had given him no reason to like me at all and here he was…

I sighed. "Ok. Lead the way."

 _Far southeast of Pappuriko_

Jepu landed with his men and saw the guards clustered around the ship they had mentioned to him. It was small and white, sleekly shaped and obviously a high class cruiser. It had pointed nose and wings with two thrusters built into them. At the back there was a single massive afterburner. It was honestly quite impressive as space ships went.

The guards remained silent as Jepu stepped up to the ship. They knew better than to speak when Jepu was thinking, especially over something as serious as this.

The ship had been hidden in a deep crevice and walls of rock surrounded Jepu on all sides. It was safe to assume the owner could fly as well, which meant they could use ki. In a word they were dealing with a trained fighter. Judging from the class of the ship they were rich to go with it, that or they worked with some seriously powerful individuals.

Jepu didn't like where his thoughts were going. He fiddled with the hem of his robes as he mused and paced around the ship. No matter how he looked at it this wasn't looking good for Namek . He was half expecting someone to fly up yelling about how the rebel army got taken out.

"Hmmm…" he said finally.

"What do we do captain?" one of the guards finally said.

Jepu frowned still looking at the ship. What to do really…

"Go back to the village and hope that Shinpa hasn't done anything to make our jobs harder."

"Yes sir."

The Namekians all took to the air and started flying back toward the village. Jepu sincerely hoped they would be careful, it had taken a while to get here because of the enemy flying around. They couldn't afford to get caught or even worse, tailed.

Jepu also prepared to leave and gathered his ki within himself. As he did so he didn't look back, neither did he think about the words scribbled on a corner of the ship. As he rose into the forever sunny Namekian sky Jepu made sure he didn't give anything away.

 _Good job finding my ship… when we last met you couldn't even find your face hehehe. Get in my way and I promise you a similar experience._

 _I'm watching you Jepu. My little maggot…_

Indeed, it was best to pretend he never saw the message. She was on this planet now… nobody was safe…

* * *

 **Rikku:50000**

 **Naya:40000**

 **Seph: Unchanged**

 **Kin: 6000**

 **Hiyori:5500**

 **Kin's power level takes into account his recovery from his injuries. So does Hiyori's. Naya had grievous wounds which gives her a massive increase. Rikku has that and training as well. Those of you worried this is going to be an unbalanced story totally about one OP person... rest easy lol**

 **kk till the next.**


	11. Chapter 10

**So sorry for the delay. This next batch should keep things interesting**

* * *

 **Chapter 10**

 ** _Jepu_**

When Jepu finally made it back to the village, he'd been hoping to keep the village on an even lower profile thanks to his discovery of the ship. A lot of dangerous elements were mixing on Namek that he knew there was no chance of beating. The _absolute last_ thing he wanted to hear was that Shinpa had moved on his own _again._

Jepu burst into Shinpa's hut to find the young Elder sitting at his white round table with his face resting in his palms.

"Took you long enough," the younger Namekian said when he saw him.

Jepu frowned. "Shinpa, what is the meaning of this? Why do I see strangers making a ruckus in the middle of the village?"

His frown darkened further. "What did you _do_?"

Shinpa hopped off the short white chair he was sitting on and put his arms behind his back.

"Jepu let's face it we are going to die," he said flatly.

"We don't have a Dragon Ball," Jepu said. "There's still a chance. Info says they're going after Dragon Balls."

Shinpa sighed. "By inviting those strangers I did three things, _Captain._ "

The last word was loaded with exasperation and just a little sarcasm.

"First of all I confirmed that the enemy is indeed the Frieza Force, feared throughout North Galaxy and headed by Lord Frieza. Until now it was just a rumor. Second, said Lord Frieza is capable of destroying this planet on a whim. Tell me Jepu, if you knew of a planet with Dragon Balls that could grant any wish- this naturally includes a wish for your death of course or a wish to gain a means by which to kill you- would you let such a planet exist after you used the Dragon Balls? Thirdly, the Saiyans have a markedly greater fighting potential than we Namekians do due to the ability to get stronger _in the midst of battle._ Those people I have invited are mainly Saiyans. In a nutshell, they embody our best chance at fighting back short of fusing you and Nail in the far north. Because you can be sure Nail isn't going to give up his duty to Elder Guru just for our tiny village or any other village for that matter."

Shinpa leveled a cold gaze on Jepu. "What I'm saying to you Captain… is that you don't know everything. It is your job to be paranoid- it is _not_ your job to tell me what to do."

Jepu nodded. "You're right. But with them here we are going to be found plain and simple. We will be found and all opposition destroyed. You've endangered us all. I can't fight them alone."

"We're already endangered," Shinpa said. "Also you have help now, and I daresay they'll be far more powerful than you are soon enough. You'd best assist with their training."

Jepu maintained his composure as he always had. He was not one to whine, he was a man of fact plain and simple.

"I dislike placing all my eggs in one basket, Shinpa. If they sink we're going down with them."

"That's irrelevant. It's the _only_ basket," Shinpa replied with a dismissive wave of one hand. "They will begin when the first sun reappears- that is tomorrow."

"And security?" Jepu said. "How do you propose we hide their usage of ki from the enemy especially as they get stronger?"

"True elevated ki levels will alert the enemy to our activities however, I noticed from the dark skinned one outside that he relied on some sort of technology to sense ki," Shinpa said, taking a look outside one of his windows facing the centre of the village. "Upon asking him I found that his outfit is standard equipment, therefore I assume they all rely on such technology. But I wonder, can it sense ki within ki…?"

Jepu followed Shinpa's gaze to see the group in question being directed toward a hut that had been vacated specifically for them. The dark skinned one was quietly listening, the short girl was also listening with a distant expression, the silver haired boy was paying rapt attention. The other, taller, brown skinned girl was looking at the bronze skinned boy with the curly black hair. The boy in question didn't even look like he was listening to what the guards were saying. Slowly he turned and stared back at Jepu and Shinpa. He blinked once, snorted and turned back to the guards.

"Your idea sounds good enough," Jepu admitted. "Things are desperate right now and I suppose this is the best I could hope for."

"Indeed," Shinpa said with a smirk on his face. He was still looking outside.

It was so obvious he was impressed with his choice of warriors. Jepu had to admit, noticing their gaze from outside the hut when they hadn't originally been paying attention to him was pretty impressive of the curly haired boy. The fact that he was so aware was something to watch out for… he was the type that was hard to read.

"I'll leave and resume my duties then," Jepu said, turning away.

"Wait."

Jepu paused on his way out.

"I understand the worry you feel, Jepu," Shinpa said honestly. "After all my father was much the same as me. I'm sorry about my tone just now… it's been difficult."

Jepu smiled an honest smile. "It's exactly why you need someone who questions you that's just as stubborn as you. It's why you have me- and unlike your father I'm not going to fail you."

Even without looking back Jepu could tell… Shinpa was smiling.

 ** _Naya_**

The daylight was bright, two suns illuminated the sky, each one at opposite ends of the horizon. This was apparently Namek at night- the third sun was supposedly on the other side of the planet at the moment. This was what Namek considered evening and all the villagers had gathered at the centre of the village to eat a big meal together rather than everyone cooking their separate meals. Naya loved this aspect of the Namekian life style, being together with people you knew and grew up with… that inter dependence they seemed to have. She had seen one Namekian child earlier in the day misbehave while his guardian was asleep and another Namekian reprimanded him. His parent was informed afterward. Here every child was everyone's child. Every job was everyone's job. You would never feel lonely here. Nothing like the Force…

There was a big pot in the exact centre of the circle of villagers that three Namekians were stirring. Surrounding them various members of the village were making what looked like salad. Blue salad… Naya shivered in disgust and stopped thinking about supper. Instead she found herself drifting back to what had been bothering her for a while now.

Kin and Hiyori were on her left, Rikku was on her right and beyond him sat Seph. Hiyori was quiet and Kin looked uncomfortable. RIkku was listening to something Seph was saying with a disinterested look on his face.

 _I nearly got him killed._

There it was plain and simple. The thought had leaped unbidden into her head but she was not one to deny things she knew to be true. Defensiveness was for weaklings who couldn't admit to their own flaws, she knew she had made a fatal mistake. She knew she ought to apologise but then what…? Sorry I nearly got you killed? That's it? A life was nearly lost and the best you can do is an apology. Apologies don't fix anything. They were just words dammit. Naya was at a loss…

 _How can I fix this…? I made a huge mistake._

She spent several minutes thinking about this as time wore on. Eventually she came to a decision.

 _Start with the apology. It's common courtesy at the very least._

She turned to her right. "Rikku…?"

He immediately turned to look at her and raised an eyebrow. "Sup."

"I'd like to say a few things to you," she said. "I mean privately."

He looked at her for a few seconds more. She could practically see the recognition in his eyes, the slight movement that said he really didn't want to hear it. But he humoured her.

"Sure."

He told Seph to hold on for a few seconds, cracked a joke about getting laid which Seph actually looked like he believed and then followed her to the back of one of the huts.

Once they were out of sight Naya bowed. Rikku was so surprised he began to speak but she cut him off.

"Oi-"

"I'm sorry for what I did on Veridia. I just didn't want to leave you behind. I felt like you could take him if only you used your real strength… fight the way you really know how to fight… but it was wrong," she said. "There's a very good reason you're trying not to do that anymore and I pushed you anyway. I'm sorry."

There was a sigh. "You're very annoying you know that. Sometimes you're more annoying than I am… yeesh…"

He grabbed her head and yanked her upright, then let go and leaned against the hut as Naya rubbed her scalp.

"First of all, why are you bowing to me? It feels friggin' weird. Second of all, ordinarily I would be pissed but since it's you I'm really not that upset. I already know why you did it. Although, the fact that you thought to apologise is honestly quite touching. Thank you for that."

That couldn't be it…? Surely there was more…

"The only problem I have is that you put yourself in harm's way for a stupid reason," he said. "Make me fight seriously? I was fighting as hard as I could without losing control of my temper. You know how I get… you know how hard it is for me to differentiate between what is wrong and what is right when I get like that. You know why I keep a close watch on everything I do and say.

"And just as bad is when I actually start to enjoy myself. When I get excited about the battle… the rush… it can be overwhelming. And you nearly died just because I'm trying not to be a murderer. It made me think, if by trying to maintain control of myself at all times I'm only going to lose the things that matter perhaps I shouldn't maintain control at all…"

Naya was stunned. "But that defeats the entire purpose! You've come so far already-"

Realization dawned. "You let yourself go on purpose."

Rikku nodded. "Yes, I did. Once I saw you get hurt I realized there was nothing I was protecting. To fight is to cause pain, to fight is to murder, to fight is to destroy."

As he said these things Naya was honestly should not have been surprised that this was the truth he came to. Considering what he was like before…

"The one who hesitates on the battle field loses his life. The moment I entered that fight with Sanza without intent to kill I lost because what I was doing wasn't fighting. It was something else, something weaker. Something fragile. What I was doing was _begging_."

He spat the last word out with a hateful hiss that was honestly quite surprising. His expression looked very similar to what he once was…

"I was _begging_ for my life. I was _begging_ for your life. Destroy your enemies before they destroy you. The only outcome of conflict is destruction, annihilate your enemy first… or you will be destroyed."

Rikku pushed off the wall and placed a hand on her head. "Stop worrying about what you did."

Naya was so shocked she hadn't moved or said a word since he spoke.

"You're fine as you are," he said.

He ruffled her hair and then walked back to the Namekian circle. It was almost enough to make her cry. Almost. But above all she was worried and sad.

 _What have I done? He's going right back to the way he was before…_

 ** _Hiyori_**

 _How can daddy protect you…?_

Hiyori sat with a bowl of an unidentified substance in front of her with a complete lack of interest. What Rikku had done on Veridia, defending her from that giant ball… what Naya had done on Veridia, fighting Sanza and Shadah and leaving the small fry to her… Seeing that had done something to her… Memories and feelings of weakness were coming back to her… And they were getting in the way. She was so angry she wanted to cry, rage and just scream. But as always she was calm and distant. Meditating on the ship did not help. Nothing did. Thankfully she knew how to keep her face blank. She had slipped up a few times on Veridia, she'd let emotions override her rational thought for quite some time.

If she was going to be honest with herself it had always been there. This helplessness inside. She was far from helpless but the emotions persisted, the memories persisted, the pain, rage and grief, the sadness all of it… they wouldn't leave her alone. Kin was obviously worried but Hiyori said nothing and simply kept eating.

Rikku and Naya came back to the circle and got their food served to them. Naya was very quiet and Kin was oblivious as usual. Seph did notice she wasn't talking and asked Rikku what happened. "I boned her too good" was the response and Seph laughed.

"Oh wow I didn't think you guys were actually you know…"

Rikku gave a sort of smirk. It was hard to tell what he thought of that comment. What was obvious to Hiyori was that Seph was clearly way off the mark and Rikku was aware of it and- this was no surprise as he'd pretty much done the same thing to her when they were looking for Naya on Veridia- he couldn't be bothered to correct him. Naya also said nothing to correct his thinking, her mind was clearly elsewhere at the moment.

Hiyori ate in silence trying to master her emotions. She had never once suppressed them but that was because they had never threatened to overwhelm her like she did now. To drown out the voices, the warm friendly voices… Hiyori began to listen only to her own hearbeat as she ate. To block out everything else, the sounds, the people and her own thoughts… her own pain.

The even thump of her heart beating was soothing in a way, a reassurance that she was alive. A reminder of why she was alive and why she was here with Kin. Frieza needed to _pay_ …

Her heart gave an extra loud thump and Hiyori's chest heaved so hard she coughed up what she'd eaten.

"Hiyori!"

Kin grabbed her by the shoulders to steady her. "Hiyori what's wrong?"

She shook her head and said, "I want to sleep."

Kin still looked worried, his effeminate face was so cute Hiyori wanted to laugh at him. His black eyes were so wide with concern it was honestly quite touching. It was the same way he looked at her then too… An extra loud thump and Hiyori had to strain to maintain control as a wave of ki pulsed through her system.

"I'm fine Kin, "she reassured him. "I think I'll turn in early."

As she said this Hiyori noticed Rikku watching her out of the corner of his eye. He didn't say anything or give any sort of reaction but he was watching. Hiyori got the feeling he was very much aware that she wasn't ok.

Kin nodded once and said, "I'll take you."

As they both stood up to leave one of the Namekians, dressed in a purple outfit and a white robe spoke up.

"I'm curious as to why you keep leaving the meal," he said slowly. "My Saiyan friends."

Hiyori knew that it was pretty suspicious, no real surprise there. But the guard had some seriously horrible timing… looking at his face Hiyori knew that he intentionally picked now to ask because it would be difficult to lie. Hiyori had no idea how to respond.

"She's just not feeling well I think," Kin replied. "I'm taking her to rest."

"Yes but the other two left before that-"

"Ho ho, so you're looking to see if we were up to something kinky is that it?" That was Rikku speaking and he had this really annoying expression on his face. He looked surprised but Hiyori knew that was fake. He made that expression deliberately to be annoying.

It wasn't even directed at Hiyori and she found it immensely irritating. _If trolls had a defined expression it would be this one…_

"Wow, were you curious? Wanna know how it works? I can tell you. You just take this-"

"When did I ever say anything of the sort? I was just trying to find out what they were doing is all," the guard retorted.

"Now, now don't be shy," RIkku said with _the most_ condescending look on his face. "I do realize there's a lack of the female form here and its functions interest you-"

The guard shot to his feet. "No it doesn't. We Namekians don't even work that way. We split into two newer beings when we grow old-"

A look of understanding crossed Rikku's face. "I see, so you pollinate yourselves…"

"HOW DID YOU EVEN GET THAT FROM WHAT I SAID?!"

"Calm down, Mr. Guard-"

"It's Jepu, Captain of the guard to you!"

"Ok Jepu Captain of the Guard-"

"Why are you saying the whole damn thing? Oi you're pissing me off."

"Ok, Jeppupu's fine then?"

"Stop making my name sound so dirty…"

This time _Rikku_ shot to his feet. "Oi don't look down on dirt you shitty guard! It's the dirt you stand on and the dirt that feeds you, you moron!"

The two butted heads near the centre of the circle.

'I'm not talking about standard dirt, maggot! I'm saying you make my name sound like a turd!"

"Not just any turd! An _alien_ turd you idiot! Get it right you shitty guard!"

" _You're the one that needs to get my name right!"_

Everyone watching the spectacle burst into laughter, the previous tension quickly forgotten.

Naya waved at Kin and Hiyori to leave mouthing, _Rikku's got it under control._

Her lips were fixed in an undeniable smile, her eyes seeming to soften at her fellow soldiers antics. Kin gave a grateful nod and assisted Hiyori in standing up. Seph on the other hand looked like he wanted to stop the fight.

 _Even though it's not even a fight…_ Hiyori thought as Kin helped her to the hut they'd been assigned. _Sometimes I get the impression Seph is in a world of his own…_

Inside the hut furniture had been shifted to make room for five floor mats. Hiyori took the upper left corner and Kin was right next to her. Seph was next to Kin and finally Rikku and Naya's mats were next to each other and closer to the entrance. All of them were purple.

Kin laid her down on her own mat and stared at her for few seconds. She could still hear Rikku and the guard arguing from the hut and honestly it was getting very silly. She couldn't resist a smile of her own as she heard the exchange.

"…. _also you're the alien here!"_

 _"_ _The hell is that supposed to mean?! To the alien you're the alien Jeppupu!"_

 _"_ _Alright then to the alien of the alien you're the alien!"_

 _"_ _And to the alien of the alien of the alien you're a turd!"_

 _"_ _You finally said it! You finally admitted that you're calling me a turd!"_

 _"_ _An alien turd! Get it right you moron!"_

 _"_ _Somehow I feel like this argument has come right back to square one…"_

Kin smiled too. "That Rikku can be pretty crazy huh?"

Hiyori didn't say anything and just closed her eyes in preparation to sleep.

"You know if that time still bothers you… you can tell me about it," Kin said. "I'm still doing my best Hiyori. I haven't given up… we can get revenge on Frieza and whatever else you need."

Hiyori still didn't say anything. Kin bowed his head and placed it next to hers. As sleep slowly began to drift over her, Hiyori found herself saddened even further.

 _You haven't given up. That's exactly the problem…_

Kin nodded awkwardly at her silence and then said, "Ok well… I'm going out now. Talk to you tomorrow."

And again, as always, Hiyori said nothing in response.

 ** _Rikku_**

The next day, or at least I presume it was the next day because the sky was _still_ shining brightly with sunlight, I got up, joined the Namekians for breakfast with everyone else and then met up with Shinpa some distance away from the village. We'd been given a packed lunch as well to be eaten later in the day, needless to say we were expected to be here a while.

I looked at the area with mild interest. It was a flat expanse of grass surrounded on all sides by huge rocks that enclosed the massive space. I liked the fact that it was so wide open, I generally hated enclosed areas. We had also been outfitted with new clothing seeing as our old clothes were pretty much history at this point.

I was wearing the purple namek clothing similar to the captain of the guard but without the robes. Kin called it a dogi or gi for short. It was pretty cool honestly, a lot less restrictive as compared to my uniform and lighter for another thing. Sleeveless, spacious, light… I could really get moving in this outfit. I'd asked if I could get a new colour for it, black or red to be more specific. Possibly both. The Namekians in charge of clothing said they would get on it but I could tell they were just humouring me. There were more important things to do after all…

It honestly wasn't bad. I used a red cloth kind of thing to wrap the waist like a kind of belt. For shoes I had on the Namek canvas shoes they all wore, brown and drab. But it was light and the entire outfit let me breathe and move with an ease I hadn't had in a long time. We all had on the same purple gi but we'd all chosen different colour belts. Naya had blue, Kin had white, Hiyori wore green and Seph wore black. It didn't exactly help him stand out but I wasn't going to complain.

Shinpa was here along with Jepu. He turned to us as we were setting down our bags and said, "This is where you can train safely. Jepu will erect a dome here underneath which you will train."

"So the enemy can't find us… nice," Seph said.

I rolled my eyes. _No shit…_

I tugged on the leg of my dogi, completely fascinated with how light the fabric was. I started to pull it in various ways just to see what it felt like.

"And what about you Elder Shinpa? " Naya asked as she stepped forward rolling one arm in preparation for the day's activities.

"We want you to get as strong as possible therefore I will use my ki to heal you as you train," Shinpa said as Jepu walked off to one side of the area with their own bags. "In this way, where you would have to leave time for recovery before you train again you can simply leap right into the next regime. You'll be able to get at least three to five days training in one day with this method."

"I estimate we'll be just a bit below Frieza's power level in a month or two," I said. "We'd best do as much as we can. We never know when Frieza will get sick of this Planet. Let's get right to it."

On that cue Jepu raised his hand above his head and then spread them wide. As he did so a dome of ki formed above us and spread over the open area- our training area- until it touched the rock walls at the edges. He then sat in a meditative position in one of the corners to maintain his concentration while Shinpa walked to his side.

"You may begin," he said.

I briefly wondered whether the Force actually wouldn't find us but then pushed that to the back of my mind. We would see for ourselves if they would or not.

I started my warm ups- a series of hops, some stretches, claps and some running in place. I immediately leapt right into the body training. I started with one handed push-ups, then moved to pistol squats, crunches, reverse crunches and finished with planks. As I finished this I realized there was a problem… I had no way to build my biceps. I looked around the training area carefully, already sweating by this time. I had no idea how long I had been exercising but considering I had done more than a few reps it must have been a while.

Kin was doing hop-squats, Hiyori was doing triangular push ups and Naya was already practicing her forms. Seph was doing planks in a corner on his own.

I moved to one of the rocks on the edge of the training area and examined it for a bit. I then used a single finger to carve a large indent into the rock wall leaving a single bar of rock across the top of the opening.

 _Perfect…_

I proceeded to do chin ups, hop-squats on my toes and then pull ups. Once I finished my last pull up I swung off the bar, satisfied with my training so far. I noticed the others already coming to the same road block I had come to. They saw the bar I had carved and decided to carve bars of their own. While they finished with that I moved on to my forms.

I knew many martial arts despite the fact that I favoured kicking. Remembering and using them all was difficult and honestly more stress than I needed, rather I had blended them and their principles- not into a single art cause they would never really be one- but into my movements. Even if my mind did not remember the body did. The trick was the stimulation.

I began to visualize my enemies. _Six. Surrounded._

I lashed out, a left side kick, turn, knife hand block, back wrist strike and palm strike to the chest. Turn, rotate the enemy off course, punch his centre and kick him back. Lean forward and and unleash a back kick on the one behind you.

I visualized eight this time and leaped into action. As the situation called for it the various skills that had been hammered into me leaped to the fore. Kicks, punches, elbows, palm strikes, dual strikes, elaborate footwork, combinations of multiple arts and their multiple principles into single techniques. In just a few minutes I had moved through my standard repertoire of strikes. Very basic but basics were life. It was the basics the advanced skills were built on. If you did the basics the advanced were a simple matter.

I noticed Shinpa watching intently. Jepu too seemed to have a mild respect for my skills although when he saw that I was looking he closed his eyes as if focusing on his dome. Not to say that he wasn't but he clearly didn't need to close his eyes to maintain the dome.

I snorted and focused on my training. After an indefinite amount of time everyone gathered in a circle. It was time for the next step: Sparring.

"So how are we going to do this?" Kin asked, looking round at all of us.

Naya, Hiyori and I were already stretching while Seph just rolled his shoulders. I finished and stood up.

"Well I had a few suggestions about that," I said. "What we all need is to see what we each can do. The entire point of sparring is to hone each other's skills. If we all just battled at once that wouldn't be very helpful so it has to be one on one obviously."

Seph nodded in agreement. "That's true but how do we decide who goes against who?"

At this point Hiyori finally spoke. "Isn't Rikku the strongest one here?" she pointed out.

"I wouldn't say that," I said, waving a hand dismissively.

"Don't write yourself off," Naya said with a grin. "You helped teach me."

Kin looked surprised. "Oh wow really?"

Seph too. "I didn't know that."

"Oi stop putting me on a pedestal or something," I said. "You're all capable of sparring with each other just fine."

"I'm guessing I wouldn't be wrong in saying you're the most experienced fighter in this group," Naya added. "What do you think Kin? Hiyori? Seph?"

"Hey I'm pretty experienced too," Seph pointed out.

"I said _most_ experienced, pay attention."

I winced. "Ouch."

"Well now that we've come to it and we have to come to together to beat Frieza…" Kin said slowly. "Yeah I think I have to admit you guys are stronger than I am and you know a lot more than I do when it comes to fighting as far as I can tell. I mean all three of you soldiers."

That statement was a big leap of faith for Kin. How could it not? He'd basically just told potential enemies that he was weaker than them. I had to admit he was brave and honest. Admirable traits to be fair- not always a good combination- but admirable all the same. I respected him a bit more then. Maybe I'd give him a bit less grief from now on.

"At ease General," I said stepping forward. "Fine. You'll all spar me one at a time and we'll see how that goes. If it's really helpful we'll stick with that. Better yet we can rotate."

"True rotation is a really good idea, " Naya said. "But there's no way we can share the area. Somebody is going to get in the way of someone else's match. Especially a mobility based fighter like you Rikku."

I sighed. "Ah well, first things first. Let's get a feel for your techniques. Who's first?"

"Me," Seph volunteered.

I nodded as everyone stepped aside to make room for him. Seph raised his fists as everyone moved off to the edges of the arena.

I waited for him to move, feeling the usual rush in my system but I calmed myself.

 _This is Seph not an enemy out to crush you. Easy now…_

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Seph wasn't coming forward at all.

"Could you just move or something? Like do something. Attack. Anything."

I raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

Seph gave me a nervous smile. "Just it's hard to attack you when you're watching me like that."

I was confused. _Like what…?_

I sighed and decided to humour him. I flew forward with a snap kick. He blocked it and tried to press forward with a jab-hook combination but I stepped back easily and kicked his thigh then snapped up to his face with the same leg. He blocked the second strike and tried to keep up the pressure using momentum. I simply went with the flow moving around him so he couldn't pin me down and launching various kicks on occasion. It got so monotonous I wondered if we were even fighting. It was so boring…

I dodged a hook easily and said, "Oi Seph are you even trying?"

"Yeah I am," he replied, breathing hard.

 _Hmmm… oh yeah my power level!_

I caught one of his swings and shoved him back with the same hand. "Hold on Seph I'm going to suppress my ki till I'm on your level."

"Ok."

He took the chance to catch his breath while I suppressed my power. I focused on the ki flow within my body. It was pretty amazing compared to what it was on the ship. The flow of my ki throughout my system was much stronger than it was before, like the difference between a small stream and a large river. The pressure of my ki flow, its sheer power was much greater. If I said I wasn't pleased I would be lying. I followed the flow to its source, a well of power lying within and then supressed it. The amount of ki flowing though my body lessened as I did this until I stopped.

I opened my eyes and compared my power level to what I could sense of Seph's.

I nodded. "We're about even now. C'mon."

Seph charged me this time to get me off guard but I sidestepped him and pumped two kicks into his midsection for his troubles. And so we fought… it was pretty unremarkable. Seph relied solely on punches and his defence was respectable- at least for his upper half. I stopped using my hands at a point simply because my kicks and my footwork were enough to allow me to do damage without ever having to get within his reach. After a few minutes he finally fell over and said, "I give up."

I was disappointed but I let it go. When I had first shown up on the Force my skills had deteriorated and Seph had been the one to spar with me. He had been a challenge then but now it was like he had stagnated… he had made no effort to improve beyond what he already had and now I'd left him far behind. I was far more skilled than he was and even with a strength gap he lost to me often. I was aware that he could do far more if he really tried but that was the problem. He _didn't_ try. Then and now… nothing had changed.

"Ok who's next?" I asked.

"Me," Naya said.

I shook my head. "Heck no. You're the closest in power to me. If I dealt with you now I wouldn't have any energy left for Kin and Hiyori. You come last."

She sighed. "Awww… and here I was looking forward to caving your chest in."

I gave her an expressionless look. "And just when did you turn into a homicidal maniac?"

"I second that interest," Jepu said from the edge of the training area.

"Shut up space turd!"

" _Oi! You've completely abandoned all pretence now!"_

Kin laughed at that as he walked up to face me. He settled into a basic even stance and waited for me to take one. As he stood before me I was quite impressed, Kin looked like he knew his stuff. He had one arm raised with the hand hanging loose from the wrist, the other was tucked at his side and his feet were evenly spaced. Solid grounding, little mass facing the opponent and hands at the ready. A good stance.

I closed my eyes and focused on the flow of ki within me. Where before I was looking to decrease the power this time I eased my hold on it and allowed the amount of ki flowing through my body to increase. I let it build till I was satisfied and then said, "Ok Kin. We're about even. Come at me."

He lunged forward with a barrage of blows. I immediately found myself hard pressed to fight back, there was no doubt: Kin was impressive. His blows were sharp and precise, his movements well controlled. Even when I countered him, he was able to easily control the flow of the fight and manoeuvre himself into a more advantageous position. He backed me up across the field, easily keeping up the pressure where Seph had failed. I found three problems though.

I blocked a punch and countered with a punch of my own in the same instant. It wasn't powerful, all it did was jerk his head a bit but the shot got Kin blinking. That was all I needed. I took the offensive and blitzed Kin with a series of strikes deliberately chosen for free flow into another strike. Kin staggered back under the offensive trying to regain his composure but I refused to let him gather focus. He tried a wild kick out of desperation that I leaped up and blocked with one knee, then extended the same leg into an aerial side kick to the shoulder that knocked him off balance. He immediately resorted to flight to stay in the moment and leaped upward with a blast prepared in both hands.

I raised a hand. "That's enough Kin."

He blinked in surprise. "Huh?"

"There's a dome we have to think about," Naya said pointedly with her arms folded.

Kin looked behind him and remembered that the dome was there and laughed nervously. "Oh right. True that. I guess huge blasts are out of the question."

I nodded as he floated back down to the ground. "Exactly."

"Anyway ," I added, moving on. "You're pretty good Kin but you do have some problems. The first is fixation, you focused on fighting me to the exclusion of all else. That's bad because you have to be aware of everything going on around you at all times both in and out of combat. This leads to your second problem, you were trying to overwhelm me with speed and strength that- frankly speaking- you don't have."

Kin raised an eyebrow in confusion. "But our strengths are the same."

 _My goodness he's so inexperienced…_

"No our _power levels_ are the same," I corrected him, raising one finger. "Our _strengths_ on the other hand, are _not_ the same."

"I'm confused," Kin confessed.

I sighed and tried my best to explain. I beckoned him over and drew the left and bottom sides of a square in the dirt. This would be my graph.

Kin got closer and examined my work with some curiosity.

"It would be best if you joined him Hiyori," I added. "Seeing as you're next anyway."

Hiyori came over to look at the drawing in the dirt. Once they were settled I proceeded to explain myself.

"Ok Kin," I said. "The x axis of this graph I've drawn here is physical prowess ok? This refers to speed and strength, basically anything to do with the body. And the y axis is mental prowess, that is mental fortitude, concentration and the like. Do you follow?"

"Uh huh."

"Let's call the point that they meet the origin. Here physical prowess and mental prowess are both zero."

"Yeah."

I then drew a line concave to the origin (a line that curves toward the origin). I made sure it didn't touch either axis but remained within the graph.

"This line I've just drawn is Power Level 1. Clear?"

"Yessir!"

"Ok so on Power Level 1 every warrior has different combinations of mental and physical prowess as you can see here."

I pointed at the extreme end of the curve on the y axis. "Clearly a warrior that is at this point of the Power Level 1 curve has focused solely on his mental prowess. His power level is 1. He is warrior M."

I gestured toward the opposite end which was on the x axis. "This here is warrior P. Clearly a warrior at this point has focused only on his physical prowess. His power level is also 1."

"Would you say Warrior M would be a match for warrior P in up-close combat?" I asked.

Kin thought about it carefully. "Well… no. He only built up his mental capabilities."

"Good," I said. "What about warrior P? If he had to rely on advanced ki techniques do you think he would be a match for warrior M?"

"No."

"Why is that Kin?"

"Well Warrior P only built his body and not his mind. That means his focus and his ki control are going to be non-existent."

I nodded. "Good. Now each of these warriors is an extreme case scenario. In reality, on Power Level 1 each warrior falls at some point on the curve between warrior M and warrior P. They rely on various combinations of both mental and physical prowess in combat. In a nutshell having the same power level doesn't mean we have the same degree of prowess, prowess in this case referring to both skill and power. It is the various combinations of physical and mental prowess each warrior possesses and how well they use them that determine the outcome of the battle."

"I see…"

I drew another curve above Power Level 1 and labelled it Power Level 2.

"Ok Kin, what's new about this curve?"

"Well for one thing, it's higher up on the graph. It's above Power Level 1."

"Good it's higher up in the graph. That means any point on the Power Level 2 curve is going to be higher than the same point on the Power Level 1 curve. That means any warrior on the Power Level 2 curve is going to be stronger than a warrior on the Power Level 1 curve _that uses the same combination_ because both his physical and mental prowess will be higher than that of someone on the Power Level 1 curve."

"Ah I get it! So any warrior who's physically _and_ mentally stronger than you is on a higher power level than you!"

I shook my head. "Close but no, it's the other way round. Anyone on a higher power level than you that possesses the same combination of physical and mental prowess will be stronger than you. A power level is just that: A level of power on which you operate. Having the same power level as someone doesn't make you equals because you both have different training, different philosophies, different skills and different bodies. A massive man mountain with the same power level as a small fry is still vastly stronger in terms of muscle. If the small fry tried to compete with him he'd burn up a lot of energy much quicker. Physically, you're my inferior Kin even at the same power level."

He rubbed his chin in thought. "I get it now. Trying to beat you with speed and strength that I don't have… it makes sense now. If I were on this curve I would be closer to Warrior M than you are right?"

"Got it in one," I confirmed. "You and Hiyori both are closer to warrior M than I am. How you will use that to gain an advantage over me is up to you."

Kin nodded. "Yeah trying to outfight you was a bad idea."

"One thing to note though," I warned. "Look at Warrior M from Power Level 2 and compare with the Warrior P from Power Level 1. In an up-close fight would you say warrior M would dominate?"

Kin thought carefully and said," Well no, because his Physical skills are still zero even if he's on a higher level of power. Being on a higher Power level means he's much stronger than before, increased speed, durability and such but it doesn't really increase his skills at all, so as long as Warrior P can keep the fight close and personal Warrior M is going to have a lot of trouble- worst case scenario he could lose."

"Good you understand the concept now," I said. "Just remember that if the power level gap is wide enough that isn't going to mean much."

Kin grinned. "Being honest I never thought of it like this."

"Hence why you were losing…" I said drily.

He smiled sheepishly at that.

"The third and final problem I noticed was concentration," I said, standing up and scuffing out the drawing. "Once I interrupted your rhythm your focus was shot and you had trouble recovering your composure."

Kin stood up and gave a bow. "I'll keep that in mind Teacher."

 _Oi, he's giving me strange titles now…_

"I'm trying so hard not to say I told you so," Naya said from the corner.

I gave her an expressionless look. _You just did though…_

She grinned insufferably at me. I sighed in response and just said," Ok Hiyori it's your turn."

She nodded, bowed and said," Yes Teacher."

I frowned. _This better not catch on…_

Hiyori took a very different stance from Kin. Most of her weight was focused on her back foot and both arms were raised in front of her with the backs of her hands aimed at me. Typical shoulder width foot placement remained. It was a rather odd stance so I decided I would experiment. I lowered my power level just a bit so we were equals and then began the fight.

I stepped forward with a probing cut kick. Hiyori spun around it and her hands lashed out toward my face at freakish speed! I jerked back in surprise and felt the sting of her attack against my cheek. She didn't let up and let her hands fly. They were just blurs in the air that I could barely follow. I stepped back under the assault unable to find any openings to turn things around.

 _Holy crap! How do you beat something like this without outright killing the person?_

I skipped to the side and let off a roundhouse followed by a spinning hook. Hiyori ducked underneath both and spun right back into my guard and let loose with the flying hands.

 _She's bloody quick too!_

As I strained for a chance to fight back I started to analyse her style more closely. It gave her several free hits because I was distracted but I didn't mind. I only moved just enough to make sure each blow wasn't fatal or heavily damaging. I noticed Hiyori's hands were open palms, or sometimes finger strikes. I also noticed that the reason for her freakish speed and power was the utilization of rotation in each step she took. It built up a force that she would ordinarily not be able to produce on her own strength. And with that I knew how to fight back.

Hiyori stepped forward again but I placed my foot right in between her own feet and collided solidly with her body to cut her rotation short. To her credit she tried to keep the generated force by resorting to elbows but a good quick shove had her stumbling. I stepped forward and delivered a sidekick only for Hiyori to catch the kick on the side of one arm and circle it violently off course so I stumbled. In that instant she was back again.

 _So persistent! How annoying…_

I dodged the next few blows and then blocked some that came too close. Waiting… watching… and then I saw my chance. As Hiyori took another circular step I took one that moved in direct opposition to her and we both struck together. Hiyori blinked in faint surprise that I had used the exact same movement in opposition to her own. I struck again. A quick snap kick to the thigh brought her to one knee where I fired off a quick punch and stopped just in front of her nose.

"I win," I stated simply.

I helped her to her feet as Seph clapped for her from the sidelines.

"Nice going Hiyori," he said. "You actually hit him a few times. That's pretty good."

I kept my face blank. _Even though the only one who has any trouble hitting me is you…._

I brought myself to the present and simply said, "True Hiyori you're very good. In fact you only had one problem as far as I could tell."

Hiyori looked at me silently and I proceeded to elaborate.

"Your movements are quick but they're easy to read," I explained. "You're using rotation to give extra speed and power to your strikes, but you're only moving in circles. The problem with that is that circles are a simple shape to follow and to predict you all I have to do is counter clockwise movement with anti-clockwise movement and vice versa."

Hiyori nodded. "So what do I do?"

"I suggest moving in more complex shapes," I said. "Your movements will still be circular and allow for rotation if for example you weave figure eights into your standard circular movements. Harder to read and you're able to keep your rotation."

"I'll try that," she said. "One thing I noticed… you have experience with such movements."

"I do," I said simply.

She waited for me to explain further but when I added nothing more she simply moved away to rest her muscles. At this point Naya, walked in front of me and also took her own stance. She stretched her arms and shook out her body.

"You look like you've been looking forward to your turn," I noted, allowing my power to rise.

She turned so only the left side of her body was facing me, spread her legs wide apart, tucked one fist close to her chest and stretched her other fist out at about shoulder level. I noticed that her weight distribution wasn't even. I estimated about sixty percent of her weight to be on her back foot. Her expression was so serious I was honestly quite surprised.

I also finally decided to use a stance for the first time since we began sparring. I turned the left side of my body toward her and raised my right fist close to my chest.

"I suppose even if it's me expecting a proper stance out of you is a bit much," Naya said with a dry smile.

"Who knows? A stance is just the base from which you utilise your techniques," I replied. "I'm only picking the parts I need."

Her face turned serious again. "I'm coming."

I was half tempted to crack a dirty joke when she leapt at me. As expected of Naya her brutality was terrifying. As I dodged and weaved, blocked and sidestepped I could hear the whoosh of air rushing by with every kick and with every punch. I skipped backward as she came after me with a series of kicks that ended with a hook kick. I leaned back and let it flash by, then stepped on the knee of her standing leg. She fell to that knee but swiped with her other leg and I jumped up into the air to avoid it.

She came after me again letting loose kick after kick, each one flying by with its own shockwave. I flitted around her to avoid them all. She turned with a roundhouse, then a spinning backfist. I ducked the first and blocked the second, lifting one leg for a counter when she suddenly shoved me as hard as she could from the shoulder using her entire body. I shot backwards at blistering speed.

 _A body check! I'm going to hit the dome!_

I let my ki burst to life around me then angled myself properly and swerved back into the fight with inches to spare. Naya met me head on flying kick to flying kick. The twin impacts nullified our momentum and in an instant we were exchanging kicks at ever increasing speed. Our legs crashed against each other on the last hit and I spun and aimed a back kick at her chest. She blocked it but got shoved back quite some distance. She was already zooming back toward me.

 _There's something wrong… she's taking this way too seriously…_

I blocked her round kick, lunged forward and unleashed a wave of force from my palm to her forehead. Her head jerked back and I flew clear just before she tried to turn things around with a headbutt.

"Something wrong?" I asked. "This is starting to look less and less like a sparring match."

Naya shook off the damage before responding.

"I was wondering if you were actually going to try this time," she said.

"It's always been like this," I said with a frown. "Why would you expect anything to- ohhhhh."

"This is about yesterday isn't it?" I said flatly. "You're worried again."

"I figured you'd have crushed me by now," she said. "I also thought you wouldn't have been so lenient with Seph and the others."

I raised an eyebrow. "So you _want_ me to hurt you?"

"No," she answered. "But I was wondering how exactly you were going to fight if I pushed you."

"….."

She frowned. "You're not going to say anything?"

"…."

"Well here I come then!"

She zoomed back into fighting range and let off a flying knee. I moved past it, placed one palm on her gut and then shoved her to the ground in one motion. She immediately flung herself to her feet in preparation to continue when I stopped her.

"Your back hit the ground first. I win."

"…What?"

"Your back hit the ground first," I said pointedly. "The match is over."

She looked quite surprised at first as if she couldn't believe what she was hearing. Then she smiled and shook her head as I finally stopped floating.

"It seems nothing has changed then," she said. "You're still the same."

A sort of relief was obvious on her face. Here she was taking on problems that were none of her concern like always… She could be really annoying at times. I was tempted to sigh but I let it be. She was doing it because she cared, in my life few could say the same with concern to me. And honestly, I didn't like it but I did appreciate it. Not that I would ever tell _anyone_ that.

"You're not the enemy I should be hurting," I said eventually. "Besides, I've honestly forgotten how to do it at this point…"

She gave me a surprised look. "Rikku…"

"Oi! Alien turd! We need heals for the next regimen!"

"I'm seriously going to kill you. You don't need Shinpa, I'll heal your stupidity permanently. _"_

Seph had been explaining the finer points of our spar to Kin and Hiyori. Our conversation had gone mostly unnoticed. As everyone gathered round Elder Shinpa and Jepu gave me the evil eye it was hard not to think that things were all ok. But I knew better… things were never ok. Naya thought I was going to start relying on murderous instinct to fight and to an extent she was correct.

The problem was that I couldn't _control_ it. It wasn't like a switch I could flip whenever. Naya could hardly be the one to bring out that kind of emotion in me. Frankly it would be impossible for her to ever bring me to that point. If that part of me were so easily influenced things would be so much easier… I could stop being so tense…

"Rikku."

"Hmmm?"

It was Seph talking to me. He gestured behind him at Elder Shinpa, who was looking at me expectantly with his hands glowing green. I nodded and walked toward the diminutive Namekian. I had to stop going back into that. There were more important things to do at the moment. As the healing energy flowed through my body I decided to think only of training. We were going to step things up from here.

 _Frieza Planet 79, two weeks later_

As he floated in the tank supposedly unconscious, Vegeta was stewing in his own anger. His humiliation at the hands of those scum. Nappa was dead now, failure of a Saiyan that he was, leaving Vegeta and that _clown_ as the last living Saiyans. The thought alone was enough to make him absolutely livid. He had mastered their little tricks… sensing energy and altering his power level. He had grown stronger as well during his recovery despite being unable to move.

The door to the room opened and one of the medics walked in to look at Vegeta's readout. Behind him three others were looking at his other vitals.

"Seems he's awake," the lead medic said. "Let him out."

As the other medics made the necessary checks before letting him out one of them asked, "So what happened to him?"

The lead one shrugged. "He arrived a few days ago completely beaten up. Goodness knows what he ran into. Nappa isn't with him either, we can only assume it was very bad."

The pod was opened and Vegeta stepped out completely naked.

"Welcome back Vegeta, sir," the lead alien said. "Please excuse my asking but what happened to you?"

"Where's my armour?" Vegeta asked, completely ignoring the question.

The medic gestured. "This way."

He led Vegeta to a changing room and picked out a folded and clean body suit along with white gloves and white boots.

He held up Vegeta's heavily cracked body armour. "We got you a new suit but your amour is unusable at this point."

"Get me another one then," Vegeta said as he slipped into the body suit, wore the gloves and pulled on his boots.

"At once."

The medic returned with much simpler body armour. Unlike his previous one that came with three extended parts that served to protect his lower half to some degree this one was pretty much just a vest with shoulder pads. Whatever… he would take it. Vegeta took it from the medic and asked as he wore it, "Is Frieza here?"

"No sir," came the reply. "He left a while ago."

Vegeta snorted in response. "So he's already bored with this Planet…"

"Sir Kiwi said to tell you to meet him in the training room."

Vegeta finally got the thing on and headed for the door. "Tell him I have nothing to say to him."

"Your scouter…"

"Keep it. I don't need it."

Vegeta knew that the Dragon Balls were tied to the Nameks. The filth from E-arth had told him that because he killed the Namek the Dragon Balls on that mud ball were rendered useless. If they were so closely tied to the Nameks odds were if he went to Namek he would find Dragon Balls. If not Dragon Balls, a way to find more Dragon Balls. This had been an easy enough deduction but first and foremost he was going to go back to E-arth the very next day and then he was going to kill all the filth that had so humiliated him. _Then_ he would wish for immortality and deal with Frieza.

As he walked down the hallways of the base toward the docking bay where the pods were kept someone got in his way. Purple skin, black armor, black body suit. Kiwi.

"Hey Vegeta," the soldier greeted.

"Go away Kiwi. I don't have time to listen to you."

Vegeta was going to walk right past him when Kiwi placed a hand on his shoulder pad and gave him a condescending smirk. "Lord Frieza is very upset with you Vegeta."

Vegeta looked back over his shoulder. "What do I care, he's not even here. Now get your dirty hand off me!"

"Frieza's being very nice" Kiwi continued, completely ignoring the comment and not taking off his hand. "He's forgiving you because of your discovery."

Vegeta frowned. "What?"

At this point Kiwi took his hand away and smirked even more condescendingly as he said, "He was so happy to be able to get eternal life and youth."

Shock ran through Vegeta's entire system. "What?! Frieza hasn't left for…"

"Namek," Kiwi finished with a grin.

Frieza _knew?!_ The absolute last person he'd wanted to hear about the Dragon Balls was now going after them!

 _Shit! He heard my conversation. I wasn't careful enough!_ Vegeta thought. _I have to get to Namek before him or I'll be his slave forever!_

"You wanted the Dragon Balls huh?" Kiwi kept talking. "Best forget about them, Lord Frieza is killing all the Nameks after he makes his wish."

 _"_ _THAT BASTARD!"_

Vegeta was already tearing down the hall toward the space pod docking bay. His thoughts were racing on the various implications of Frieza obtaining the Dragon Balls and the various implications of his discovery of Vegeta's treachery. He could hear Kiwi calling after him but he ignored it; that maggot was hardly worth talking about at this point. Petty, selfish and worthless besides their strength were monikers that served to describe the entire Frieza Force and Vegeta could care less who was after him or what any of them could actually do. He was an elite who was much stronger than before. Anyone who got in his way would be eliminated with prejudice. He burst into the docking bay, got in a pod and quickly entered his coordinates. Within minutes, he was racing through the emptiness of space toward Planet Namek. No one could have the Dragon Balls! He was the one who was going to wish for immortality! He would _not_ let Frieza have the Dragon Balls! No! Just no!

 _Dirty lizard! This is one thing you are not going to take from me! I swear it as the Prince of all Saiyans!_

 ** _Unknown_**

As expected, Frieza had gone after the Dragon Balls. The figure considered intervening, after all the lizard would probably make a troublesome wish like "Make me immortal!" and it would have to come up with some way to monitor the nuisance for the rest of his miserable life. Naturally this would be because Frieza would come to believe being immortal somehow made him a threat of some kind…

The figure snorted. Even Beerus knew his limits, but clearly Frieza did not… and if there was one thing the figure hated it was disrespect. Still it was a good opportunity to see all the Saiyans reunited, it had yet to see them work together after all.

Not for the first time it wondered why it was bothering with these Saiyans, there were many other races it could have chosen. Saiyans weren't even the _only_ warrior race anyway. They probably didn't even know why warrior races existed. If their only purpose was life they would have come equipped only with what they needed to survive, but Saiyans had far more than that and never questioned it. Then again they had yet to discover that they had far more than that…

So much work to do… But ah well… there was time. It could afford to amuse itself watching things play out. Besides the way things were looking the Saiyans might just begin to discover their true potential…

It couldn't resist a smile.

Namek was looking like the place to be…

* * *

 **Rikku (Upon recovery) -100,000**

 **Naya(Upon recovery) -90,000**

 **All other power levels remain relatively unchanged. For anyone confused about what Rikku was talking about I used actual Taoist principles to guide Rikku's understanding of the energy within his body. He knew to call it ki because he had a sensei who shall not be revealed because the idea of you being curious amuses me. Anyway, on to the next.**


	12. Chapter 11

**And away we go...**

* * *

 **Chapter 11**

 _Planet Namek, 2 weeks after Vegeta's departure_

In the peaceful Namekian sky an old white space ship with spikes for landing pads, eased itself down to the soft blue grass of the planet surface. A hatch underneath it opened and levitated to the ground. On it a bald short man in an orange gi and a small boy in a purple gi stood. When they got off the bald man and the small boy both stood directly in front of it to observe their new surroundings.

"Wow," Krillin said as he let his eyes take in the green skies and blue grass of Planet Namek.

"Amazing," Gohan said as he did much the same. "This kind of reminds me of the place Piccolo-san trained me in."

Krillin looked surprised at the information and then nodded. "He must be instinctively inclined to like places that remind him of his home world."

"You might be right," Gohan agreed.

"Hey! Did you morons even check if it was safe before leaving just like that?!" Bulma yelled at them from below.

Krillin scratched his bald head in confusion. "What's she so mad about?" he asked.

Gohan shrugged. "Beats me."

"If you died I would have had to find the Dragon Balls by myself," she said, clicking a compass she had in hand. A small radar swirled around the screen a few times and five blips appeared on it. Bulma was of course, referring to the fact that none of them actually knew if the air on Namek was safe to breathe.

"Maybe she was just being paranoid?" Krillin suggested quietly to Gohan.

The small boy shrugged in response.

"Oh look there are three Dragon Balls in one place," Bulma announced as she observed the seven blips that appeared on the screen.

"Oh wow, three in one place," Krillin noted in surprise. "We just might get this over with very soon!"

As he and Bulma speculated over how easily they could wish everyone back to life and go home Krilin noticed Gohan was not so excited, he was staring off into the distance with a rather serious expression.

"What's wrong, Gohan?" Krillin asked.

"There's a strong ki over there…"

At this Krillin took a moment to search for himself and found that indeed there was. It was massive, far dwarfing anything he had ever felt from anyone. It made Vegeta's look like firework compared to a forest fire. And there were three right beside it that weren't as strong but were big enough to put the fear of God in Krillin. It felt… dangerous somehow.

"What are you two worried about?" Bulma said nonchalantly. "It's probably a Namekian."

Krillin crossed his arms in indecision. "You're probably right…"

"But that size…" Gohan added.

"It's abnormal," Krillin agreed.

Bulma didn't give up so easily. "Piccolo was a Namek and look how strong he was on Earth. Stands to reason they could be even more powerful here. Guys, it's most likely a Namek."

"In which case, let's go introduce ourselves to the Namekian," she suggested, raising one finger.

Krillin considered it for a while and then shook himself with a laugh. "Yeah I suppose there was nothing to be worried about," he said. "Alright then guys let's get going."

Everyone split off to prepare for what would become another adventure. A search for the Dragon Balls. Krillin was very nearly lost in nostalgia when he remembered how Goku went on adventures to find the things back when they were kids. He hoped it would be one of those. Bulma was fiddling with the radar and muttering to herself, Gohan was looking through his backpack for something or other Chichi had packed for him. Krillin retrieved his own backpack from the ship and was sifting through it when a loud boom rocked the planet as a comet came crashing into the earth some kilometres away.

Krillin leaped back in shock. "A Saiyan spaceship!"

Bulma was hardly as collected as she was a few minutes ago. "This isn't happening…" she said with eyes wide.

"It's Vegeta," Gohan pitched in. "I can sense him."

"Bring your power down Gohan!" Krillin ordered. "We don't want him to even know we're here. We've got no chance otherwise."

Gohan followed the command, swiftly bringing down his power level to almost nothing. He could sense that Krillin had done much the same the instant he had sensed Vegeta.

Gohan was not as bothered by this as Krillin and Bulma. Yes he was afraid but he had come on a mission and he would not be denied. Piccolo had died defending him, his friends had died defending Earth… Things didn't have to end here.

Krillin jumped to a quick decision.

He turned to Bulma. "Bulma, it's no longer safe. We can't take you with us. You stay here and tell everyone back home that Vegeta is here. We need Goku. Can you pass me the Dragon Radar?"

"All we need to do is make sure to get the Dragon Balls before him," Krillin said.

Bulma handed him the device and went into the ship to retrieve and setup her long distance communication device. It took her a lot of time, roughly two hours or so considering the complexity of the machine in question. At first Krillin couldn't even tell that it was for communication.

As she did so Krillin and Gohan stood guard. They caught snippets of the conversation ("Yes Vegeta is here! Tell Son! And don't tell Chichi!").

Bulma had been able to reach Muten Roshi and was giving him the update on Vegeta's location. After a few minutes she put the phone down on what Gohan could only guess was its receiver –such a complicated mess of hardware it was- and turned toward them.

"They said he would get here in two months," Bulma said.

Krillin and Gohan froze. "Two months…"

There was some amount of silence as this sank in.

"Well I'm going back to bring Goku," Bulma said with a wave.

At this Krillin looked at Gohan and said, "Do you want to go home Gohan? There are so many enemies around maybe I should just do this myself."

"But you can't find all the Dragon Balls by yourself," he pointed out.

Krillin laughed nervously. "That's true isn't it…"

As the three discussed Gohan finally noticed two new energies closing in. After a few moments Krillin caught on too and they both stared at a rock opposite the river they had landed nearby. True to form sounds of movement could be heard and eventually two aliens floated out from behind the rocks.

"I think this is where General Zarbon said to come to," one of them, a blue skinned man with a white beard was saying. He was dressed in armour similar to Vegeta which was enough to put Gohan and Krillin on edge.

The other one, purple skinned humanoid with a beak shaped mouth and protruding head had responded, "Seems like it. Those must be the people he detected."

Blue skin clicked the device on his face that all three recognized as a scouter. "Their power levels are abysmal. They must be tourists."

At this he grinned the grin of someone who has power over someone else and planned to abuse it.

"I feel like messing with them," he said.

"Sure," his teammate agreed, aiming the gun thing he was holding.

Gohan and Krillin tensed ready to dodge any sort of attack, but to their surprise the beak faced alien fired at the ship instead. The bullet for lack of a better word exploded into the ship with force enough to blast a hole into the entire front cockpit, making future flights and even basic operation impossible.

Krillin gritted his teeth. "Gohan, these guys are annoying me."

Gohan nodded quietly, a frown plastered on his face.

Blue-skin grinned his bully grin again. "And what are you gonna do?"

Both Gohan and Krillin spread their feet and let the power they had so swiftly supressed what would add up to roughly half an hour ago flood throughout their bodies in full force. The soldiers scouters burst trying to track the increase and both jerked in surprise. The momentary break in focus was all Gohan and Krillin needed to appear right in front of them in the air. Before the two could so much as blink a kick from Krillin and a punch from Gohan had the two tearing backwards through the air where they both collided with each other, bounced off and then fell into the river with distinct splashes.

Gohan and Krillin landed back on the ground and gave each other an excited high five.

"That's not cool!" Bulma screamed at them.

She fell to her knees in front of the destroyed ship. "It's all gone. We're stranded…"

Krillin looked sheepish at that. They'd beaten the enemy but the ship was destroyed… that was literally the most embarrassing thing about it all. He retrieved his hat and bags and asked Gohan to do the same. As Gohan got his stuff Krillin talked to Bulma, trying to cheer her up. She lay there and moped for a long time. There was a word for this, Krillin thought. Inconsolable. That was it.

"Uhhh, Bulma," he said, eventually giving up. "Why don't we at least move from here? It's clearly not safe."

At this she nodded and moved to get her own things, or at least as much as could be salvaged from the ship. After several minutes, Bulma and Gohan were ready and Krillin led the way. He was the one in charge naturally, he was the only experienced fighter here and even so he was lacking three months physical training after the debacle with Vegeta back on Earth.

He had been the only one in any condition to come and protect Bulma from whatever would happen to be on this planet. And then they'd arrived only for threats to pop up from every corner, not to mention that giant ki from before that he was still dodgy about.

He led them across the Namek landscape for what seemed like an age or two, finding it irritating just how open the planet was when all you needed was some really good cover. The most depressing thing about the entire mess was how all these things had happened in the span of roughly two hours (Tip from the author: he's about to get even more depressed).

After a few minutes more of walking Krillin noticed a large rock outcropping and led Gohan and Bulma toward it, in the hopes of a cave. He was gratified when there was indeed a cave and pointed excitedly, "There's a cave. C'mon guys."

Grumbling Bulma followed him while Gohan maintained the aura of quiet curiosity he had maintained since he arrived… not counting the beat down on the soldiers of course. Once within a few feet of the cave, Krillin noticed the large energy from before bearing down on them…

"The large ki is moving again," Gohan said. "Coming this way."

"Yeah…" Krillin agreed. "Maybe it's a Namek like we've been saying…"

He squinted when he saw them several spots on the horizon. And then he saw the uniforms.

"Everyone get in the cave!Gohan! Power down as far as you can!"

Bulma, Krillin and Gohan rushed into the cave and hid right behind its edges just as an entire battalion of armor clad soldiers zoomed by. Loud sonic screams accompanied them and rebounded within the cave walls, deafening the occupants. It was just a few seconds and the powers were a blip on the radar of Krillin's senses once again.

Krillin proceeded to take off his blue undershirt and cap, preferring to wear the raw gi. In that time he had noticed Bulma at the entrance. She was holding the radar.

"That guy in front…" she said thoughtfully. "He has four of the dragon balls."

The implications of this sank in. The armour of the people he was with denoted them as the same kind of people who had attacked them earlier. The armour similar to Vegeta's.

"Why are there so many of Vegeta's allies here?" Bulma asked.

Krillin shook his head. "I don't think they're allies. Since he landed, Vegeta has killed one of them. He must be searching for the Dragon Balls on his own."

He could not hold back his frustration. "How can we hope to compete with them? That one in front is monstrous, his ki is completely abnormal and on the other hand Vegeta too…"

Krillin sighed. "Bulma, call Muten Roshi again and tell him to get Goku. We can't take you along, Gohan and I will try to get Dragon Balls in the meantime."

He and the half Saiyan stood outside the cave.

"Remember to keep your power down Gohan," Krillin reminded him.

Gohan nodded.

"Ok let's go!"

The two bounded over the landscape after the large ki.

 _10 kilometres to the west…(and some time back)_

Vegeta got out of his pod and wore the scouter he'd taken from one of the hidden compartments. He clicked the side of it growling, "Work you useless piece of trash."

While he could sense energy there was no denying the scouter was faster. Three blips appeared on his lens identifying Frieza, Zarbon and Dodoria. Vegeta immediately took off in that direction. Now that he was travelling he had time to reflect just a bit. He wondered very briefly if Rikku and Naya were here as well but then dismissed the thought. He knew a suicide mission when he saw one in any case the most important thing was becoming a force to be recognized. He had to get out from under Frieza. He didn't get very close when a small comet broke through the atmosphere and streaked across the sky at some speed.

 _Kiwi must have followed me…_ Vegeta noted as it crashed into the planet with a loud boom.

Well it seemed he would have to clean up. Vegeta diverted course with some amount of displeasure. He would kill Kiwi quickly and get back to dealing with Frieza. He landed on some decrepit island he couldn't be bothered to identify geographically and stood waiting. True to form, within a few minutes Kiwi was landing on the soft blue grass of Namek directly opposite him.

"Well hello Vegeta," Kiwi said with his arms folded. "I'm here to kill you and guess what. It's Frieza's orders!"

On reflex, Kiwi clicked his green scouter to check Vegeta's power level and chuckled almost in disbelief. "There is still no difference between our powers, if anything you've lost your edge. How do you expect to win with a power of that size?"

At this Vegeta could not help but smirk. This maggot had no idea who he was talking to… The idiot had no idea that he was not using anywhere near his full power. Partly to fool Frieza and partly because it took a load off his body he had never known was there. Like the difference between being hyper all the time and taking a moment to just slow down and relax.

"Haha no difference in our powers very funny. You rely on your scouter too much."

Honestly, Nappa had that problem too. Raditz as well and it had cost them their lives even when Vegeta had said it repeatedly from day one, trust no information but the ones your senses gave you. Even if you had a machine it was just a machine, what mattered was what you deduced from it.

Vegeta laughed out loud at the idea of Kiwi even considering himself a challenge at this point. He laughed and laughed and laughed until he could laugh no more.

Kiwi frowned as Vegeta finally stopped laughing.

"Rivals… hahaha, ok I'll show you something…" the Prince said, folding his arms.

Kiwi blinked clearly bothered by the fact that Vegeta showed no signs of retreat or even fear. The Prince was _oozing_ confidence. Vegeta knew at his current strength Kiwi was nothing but fodder.

"You see during my time on E-arth I learned something useful," Vegeta said smugly.

"What how to run away quickly?" Kiwi retorted.

Vegeta only smirked further. "No. I learned how to control my power level."

Kiwi frowned. "Control your power level…?"

"I suggest you use that scouter of yours to watch my power level carefully," Vegeta said, changing his stance and beginning to let the energy within him flood his body with power.

Hesitantly Kiwi reached up to his scouter and pressed the scan button. He watched with horror as the numbers zoomed up the screen, the figure climbing ever higher until it stopped at a specific number.

Kiwi's eyes bugged. "18000?! How did you even get that strong?! Why is your power level so much higher than before?! Impossible! It's as high as mine!"

The Prince's smirk did not fade. "Fool! I haven't even reached my limit yet. I'm just getting started! Did you honestly think I was going to remain the same power level ? You have done nothing for training while I've been doing planet assaults for Frieza!"

Vegeta upped the output even further. "Haaaaaaaaaaaa!"

The ground shook violently as the environment reacted to the stress of handling his strength. Kiwi's scouter burst trying to track him beyond 22000.

Kiwi staggered back in fear as Vegeta began to advance. "No this is impossible… "

He scrambled backwards as the Prince's sheer presence and intent to kill overwhelmed him.

"W…wait Vegeta! I've got a good idea! Hear me out!"

Kiwi's hasty retreat had him stumble and fall but he scrambled back to his feet and kept moving backwards. "Listen Vegeta, why don't you and I fight side by side?"

The Prince kept coming forward. He had no interest in anything Kiwi had to say. His "rival" had always been a liar, a sleazy bastard who wormed his way into Frieza's good books and stayed there like some kind of leech. There was nothing to like, nothing to respect, nothing worth keeping him for and above all he insulted Vegeta and his heritage multiple times. How Vegeta had wanted to kill him from the start…

"We can team up on Frieza and beat him," Kiwi said rapidly. "And with your power level you can take out Zarbon and Dodoria."

"That leaves Zithis you moron. Do I look stupid?" Vegeta barked. "Stop your stalling."

"You're smarter than I thought…" Kiwi said with a grin.

He'd given up the act and committed himself. A resolve shone in his eyes that Vegeta recognised. He was giving up on negotiation. Kiwi was going to fight. He charged at Vegeta and the Prince pulled back a fist in response when Kiwi finally stopped mid-flight and stepped back in fear.

"Ah Lord Frieza!"

On sheer reflex, Vegeta turned to look. "What?!"

Immediately Kiwi fired a barrage of energy blasts at him. Vegeta watched comfortably from behind Kiwi as the landscape was completely decimated by his attacks. After a few minutes, Kiwi let up and laughed.

"Ha! I don't care how big your power level has gotten, after taking an attack like that head on there's no way you're getting up again!"

Vegeta chose then to speak. "You wish. I have to admit, even for you that was a pretty dismal move. I'm speechless."

"When did you-?!" Kiwi demanded in shock.

"If my power level has increased obviously so has my speed," Vegeta offered in an off-hand sort of tone. "That means all your little stunt succeeded at was pissing me off."

Kiwi gulped and fell onto his butt before the shadow of the Prince of all Saiyans. Vegeta was raising one hand when Kiwi scrambled back in fear and blasted into the sky.

Vegeta was after him like a shot. "You won't escape!"

He easily cut in front of the soldier and punched him mid-flight so hard the soldier bent around his arm, then uppercut him higher into the air and pointed at him. Kiwi lit up with purple energy, sparkling brightly in the Namekian sky before suddenly blowing up in a huge explosion.

As the body parts, and blood mixed with violet ki began to fall out of the sky, its image was very like something you would see at a festival.

Vegeta's arrogant smirked returned once more. "What dirty fireworks…"

He landed on the ground once more to gather his thoughts once again. He knew Frieza would have detected that display for sure. Zarbon and Dodoria he could beat but Frieza and Zithis… Not to mention Frieza already had some of the Dragon Balls and he would find the rest with the scouters. Still if Frieza could only find six of the things they'd be useless to him. Vegeta was still in the running, he'd just have to play smart.

He clenched his fists and grinned to himself. "Once I pull that off I can wish for eternal life, even killing Frieza won't be a dream anymore. Soon I'll be the number one fighter in the entire bloody universe."

Given his situation it was a good plan, killing Kiwi was good, getting stronger was good. Vegeta was getting to be in a good mood. And he was sure that it would only get better…

 ** _Gohan_**

Bulma had said the large ki was probably a Namekian but now Gohan knew better. As he and Krillin got closer and closer Gohan thought it strange that there would be such large ki that outclassed everything else within his sensing range by such a large margin. And the outfits that they were wearing were so similar to Vegeta's that there was no doubt… even if they weren't related there was nothing good happening around those guys.

They found that the large ki was surrounded by four energies and were all in one place, a small village with scattered huts and seemingly randomly selected farm lands around it. Krillin signalled that they go round and observe before they actually went down there and spoke to anyone and so Gohan followed him and landed on a ridge overlooking the village, both laying low to observe what was going on. One of them, a blue skinned man turned toward the ridge they hid behind just as they lowered their power levels so they wouldn't be sensed in any way and then watched the people in the village carefully.

They seemed to be saying something. Gohan strained to hear more…

 ** _Zithis_**

 **"** Something wrong Zarbon?" Frieza asked.

"My scouter picked something up from that ridge over there but it's gone now," the green haired alien said. "Must have been a bug or something."

"You scouter is just on fire today," Zithis noted. "Before you said you detected two 1500 power levels that disappeared and sent two soldiers. Then you detected them again and both soldiers are gone along with said power levels. Before that was Vegeta, if memory serves…"

"I'm just trying to be efficient Zithis, I'm sure you can at least appreciate that," Zarbon said.

All he got was a snort in response. "It's the only reason I put up with you I can assure you."

As the group stood facing the villagers, Zithis was mildly detached from the whole thing. He was well aware of the two people hidden behind the ridge but again maintained his distance. Anything that would throw a wrench in Frieza's plans was welcome at this point. So far Frieza had directly sent most of his forces on this Dragon Ball hunt and as a result Zithis was constantly next to Frieza what with being one of the strongest in the Force. This was bad because it meant for practically a month Zithis was ignoring a golden opportunity to get past Frieza and go after his assigned targets.

He also sensed Vegeta's presence on the planet surface and the spike that indicated that he'd attacked someone. Three soldiers energy signatures had been snuffed out, two by the ones behind the ridge and one nearby Vegeta. It was safe to assume he was a traitor at this point. All this without the scouter naturally, to Zithis it was just an accessory.

"What's wrong Zarbon?" Frieza asked.

"Vegeta's power went over 22000," Zarbon stated. "I'm still quite stuck on that."

"Can't be," Dodoria snorted. "He's never been anywhere near that strong before. I told you the thing must be malfunctioning. 24000 was the final number, he's never been on our level."

"That's higher than ours," Zarbon said.

"I said it's impossible for him to be 24000," Dodoria said. "His power was only 18000 before."

"It's not very surprising," Frieza said. "Vegeta has been in constant battle for a long time. It must have raised his power level."

Here he smirked. "But 24000 is nothing to me. He's here to have eternal life like myself but he shouldn't cause me too much trouble, it was only a matter of time before he turned against me anyway. _Vegeta_ is nothing compared to me."

"He wiped Kiwi easily," Dodoria said. "There's definitely been an increase, just not to our level."

Frieza cut the conversation short. "That's not important. Just keep an eye out, Vegeta did not come here without a plan."

No surprise there, nobody had ever been a threat to him and few ever would be.

The village they were in was simple as all the villages had been before. Plain white spiky huts set in some sort of pattern with an open area in the middle. Frieza was talking to the village Elder, asking for the Dragon Balls.

"Well we know you have the Dragon Ball," Frieza was saying. "So now you either give it to me or you die."

Dodoria was on Frieza's right, Zarbon on his left while Zithis stood next to Zarbon. The two soldiers each had two Dragon Balls carried under their armpits. The wish orbs were quite big to say the least, each one very close in size to Zarbon's torso.

"I told you we don't have any Dragon-"

"Zarbon, Dodoria."

At Frieza's command, both 'Generals' killed three villagers nigh instantaneously with single blows and reappeared back at his side. Zithis found himself wondering where this whole General thing even came from. The real Generals were those under King Cold's command. Frieza and Cooler only ever got captains and the like. Well they were sort of Generals when you thought about it, in Frieza's section of the army anyway. But really under the whole united thing Zithis laughed at the idea of Zarbon being a General what with being as weak as he was. The Frieza Force was a small section of a much greater army. The smallest section but one: Cooler's Army.

The Elder was begging now. Most of his villagers were dead now, the first thing Frieza had done when they arrived was launch a blast of ki into the group of villagers that had gathered to see who was coming. The Elder had been hiding in a hut with two smaller Nameks.

"Tell me again," Frieza said with his standard smirk in place. "Do you have the Dragon Ball?"

The little lizard looked like he was enjoying himself greatly, seated in his space scooter thing like what he was doing was simply standard procedure. Amusing standard procedure but standard nonetheless. In a way it _was_ standard procedure…

The Elder was finally about to give in when three Nameks charged into the village and landed between Frieza and the Elder with auras blazing.

"Don't tell him anything Elder," the one in the middle said. "We'll finish all of them off."

Frieza frowned. "Kill them."

All the soldiers behind Frieza, Zithis, Zarbon and Dodoria charged at the three Nameks. Frankly Zithis was mildly impressed when the three Nameks then proceeded to beat the life out of all Frieza's soldiers. They were truly impressive if only they were more powerful. Zithis knew it would not end well for them. Soldiers were thrown left and right, spines broken, eyes losing their light, heads blown off, engulfed in explosions and the like.

"We're losing soldiers there," Dodoria noted dispassionately.

"There's more of those things back at the ship," Frieza said. "It's not like we're losing anything valuable-"

Just as he said this the three warriors completely annihilated the soldiers and blew up their scouters with several precisely aimed beams. Zithis and Zarbon had their scouters blown off their faces while Frieza dodged the blast with a look of displeasure. The Namekian warriors flew back into position between Frieza and the Elder who now had his confidence back. Zithis nearly smiled at how quickly Frieza stopped smiling. Scouters cost resources to make after all. Well he still had another comm link in his armor- custom made. The ki sensing he could already do.

"Leave!" the green man said with authority, two little boys clinging to his sides. "We will give you nothing! Now you can no longer find our villages!"

Frieza sighed. "Zithis."

Zithis raised one hand. A red bolt of energy slammed into all three warriors and blew them up, reducing them to nothing in an instant. Zithis lowered his hand and kept it loosely by his side where it had originally been.

The fear returned once again to the Elder's face. He had clearly thought that those three could stave off any more violence. That with them he had won.

 _They must have had some sort of reputation for combat skill around here,_ Zithis thought. _Truly a waste._

"So back to what I was saying," Frieza continued. "Where is the Dragon Ball?"

The Elder was silent once more.

"You look like you need some motivation," Frieza said. "Dodoria."

The pink fat alien stepped forward and one of the children at the Elder's side tensed. Upon realizing the menacing alien was looking at him, the small boy on the left ran. Before he could get very far Dodoria opened his mouth and fired a large beam at him. The beam collided and killed him instantly. The Elder was sweating and bowed his head to hide the pain… but Zithis could tell.

 _That was probably one of his sons or one of the children he cared for…_

The Elder reached behind him and retrieved the Dragon Ball from whatever hidden fold he had stored it in and held it out. Zithis walked over and took it, holding it up with one hand as the Elder fell to his knees and began to cry about his loss. There was no point trying to show no weakness anymore, Frieza had gotten what he wanted. It had cost lives that were never going to be replaced too. The Elder just had one kid left. Zithis understood, he didn't particularly care but he understood.

It was at this point Zithis felt a large spike in energy from the ridge. At the same time, a transmission came in through the comm link in his body armour. The designation was the space ship communication centre.

"LORD FRIEZA! LORD FRIEZA! ANYONE! HELP US! IT'S THE SAIYANS-"

The transmission was abruptly cut off just as two small blurs rushed in to the village. One kicked Dodoria clear away from the last living child and the other snatched him up. Just like that both were gone.

Everyone except Zithis was surprised. He had known those two were there for some time. What he had never seen coming was the transmission from the base. Something so big that they were calling for help from Frieza himself… Saiyans that an entire space ship full of some of Frieza's best couldn't handle? Was there ever such a thing? Second of all there were Saiyans _outside_ those in the Force? And the timing, right when the two hidden people struck was when the transmission came in. Was there a connection?

Personally, Zithis had only implied ideas and no actual concrete conclusions. On reflex he let his senses roam and once he knew what exactly was going on he had to admit he was impressed.

Frieza was still thinking when Zithis finally decided to speak.

"Lord Frieza," he said. "My personal squad is quite strong. I can mobilize them from here to assist with whatever it is that's going on."

"Indeed," Frieza muttered with a hand held to his chin.

Zithis could tell what Frieza was thinking. He was a selfish creature and therefore predictable. He was thinking 'Do I need those soldiers? Do I really have to interrupt my hunt to see what happened to my ship? I can survive in the vacuum of space so I don't need a space ship. Is it worth going personally?'

It was because of this that Zithis knew Frieza would accept.

"Where is your squad now?" the diminutive tyrant asked.

"They were last on a mission to deal with the local army," Zithis responded.

"Hmmph then they should be strong enough," Frieza said. "Send them in."

"Did I just hear Saiyans though?" Zarbon said as Zithis pressed a finger to his collar bone to deliver the command. "Those weak things?"

"Must be a mistake," Dodoria suggested.

"Dodoria I have an assignment for you," Frieza cut in. "Find those two creatures that kidnapped the boy. I want to know what association they have and if I can exploit it to find more Dragon Balls. Leave the ones you have with Zarbon."

"Yes Lord Frieza."

The General set them down and flew off after the two kidnappers. In the meantime Zarbon used his energy to lift the two extra balls up.

Zithis finally got through to his squad.

"Sir?"

"I've got news Lart," Zithis said. "Home base is under attack and whoever it is, is winning. I'm sure I don't need to say what I want."

"On it sir. We're moving out as we speak."

"Good. Report the situation when you get there. Before engagement if possible."

"Yes sir!"

Zithis let the communication die and looked over at Frieza. "They're on their way Lord Frieza."

"How efficient your squad is..." Zarbon commented with his usual smirk.

Frieza's own condescending smile returned as he said, "Ok. We're going to the next village."

The Elder looked up with tears in his eyes. In Zithis opinion he shouldn't have, it reminded Frieza that he was still there and for that matter _still alive_.

The tyrant's smile widened. "But before that… you will tell me where the last two Dragon Balls are."

The screams of the Elder rang for miles…

 ** _Krillin_**

"You idiot!" Krillin screamed, with the small green Namekian in his arms.

"I couldn't watch them just kill everyone!" Gohan yelled back.

The two were flying at top speed away from the massacre. They tore through the skies as fast as they could, two comets streaking across the green sky at blistering speed. Before Krillin could further berate Gohan for his actions, the two sensed something catching up to them very, _very_ quickly.

So quickly that before Krillin could so much as open his mouth a ki blast was thrown at them from right behind them that both split up to dodge. Another followed that grazed Krillin and made him drop the small green Namekian.

"Oh crap!" Krillin immediately dove after the small alien and was just about to grab him when he was caught by the foot from behind. Krilln looked above him to see the pink alien smirking about to say something. He immediately rammed his head into his opponents face and dove back after the Namekian.

The pink alien recovered quickly and dove after him once more, already very close to catching him.

Krillin waited until the pink alien was close enough and then raised his hands to his head with all ten fingers framed around his face.

"TAIYOKEN!"

Krillin let out a blast of ki so purely refined and bright it was like looking into the sun. The world disappeared in a blaze of white and the only thing that existed were the screams of the alien as his eyes were seared with bright light. Krillin let the technique die out and quickly turned tail and dove after the Namekian he'd been carrying.

Krillin quickly caught up with the small Namekian and caught him before he hit the ground. He then zoomed up to Gohan and waved at the half-Saiyan.

"C'mon Gohan, hide!" he yelled.

The two dove behind a massive rock a large distance away from the alien and watched him scream and writhe as he tried to recover from the damage done to his vision.

With eyes still shut the alien, suddenly let out a huge burst of his aura. "That's it! I'm angry now! I'll blow you to pieces! You're all dead!"

A large blast of ki exploded from his body and decimated the entire wasteland for an extremely huge distance. It even came right up close to where Krillin, Gohan and the Namekian were hiding but thankfully it didn't touch them. Krillin could feel the heat and power behind the blast and knew that a few inches closer would have been death.

Once the explosion was over the alien chuckled once he was finally able to see again. "That's what you get. Lord Frieza said to bring you back but this is better than letting you escape anyway."

Still chuckling to himself, the big alien turned around and flew back toward the village they had escaped from.

Krillin let out a breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding. He had been so sure they were going to die when he saw that huge monster coming after them…

"We… we're saved," Gohan said, almost disbelievingly. "Wow…"

"Good thing I was able to use Taiyoken when I did," Krillin said, when he finally recovered himself. He turned his focus on the young Namekian in his hands. "You alright buddy?"

The Namekian nodded. "I'm fine thanks to you. But my family… my village…"

Krillin sympathized with the little guy, but he knew that most likely that kid's dad was already dead by now. Gohan had already been moving when that lucky distraction came in the form of whatever those three powerful guys were listening to. Krillin was sure the Namekian already knew this, could tell in some way. The older ones ki was already snuffed out.

Gohan frowned. "I'm sorry we're so weak. When we get the Dragon Balls we'll use them to revive everyone."

The Namekian looked surprised at that statement. But then he smiled gratefully, and Krillin knew that Gohan had just made a friend.

 _Infact, that's pretty much the same attitude Goku had back when we were little,_ Krillin thought with a smile.

"What's your name?" Krillin asked. "Can you fly on your own?"

"My name is Dende," the alien replied. "And yes I can fly, we are taught from a young age."

To prove his point the small Namekian lifted himself into the air.

"That's great!" Gohan said with a smile. "C'mon. We're going back to Bulma."

 ** _Vegeta_**

Flying in the green sky of Planet Namek Vegeta was properly shocked when he heard the transmission.

"LORD FRIEZA! LORD FRIEZA! ANYONE! HELP US! IT'S THE SAIYANS-"

 _Saiyans?! There are Saiyans attacking Frieza's ship?_

Vegeta stopped cold in the air no longer sure of himself. There were more of his people alive and fighting Frieza? No it couldn't be that simple. Vegeta shook his head thoroughly and thought it through carefully.

He was the Prince and therefore the strongest of his race, his current power level was leagues above that of any other Saiyan before him. Even if other Saiyans survived, they could not have undergone the suicide missions Frieza often sent him and his team on to get this strong. Most would have died or not reached a level of strength that could pose a threat. An example would be Kakarot, who could barely stand against Vegeta even with the help of all his friends and his son as a great Ape. Most of the elites at the base could handle such a threat with ease.

 _Then who…?_

There was another possibility: the surviving Saiyans. Vegeta had killed off Nappa for being useless and Raditz died of his own uselessness leaving only two possible candidates: Rikku and Naya. Could it be possible that Rikku and Naya could become so powerful as to be beyond the strength of an entire ship full of Frieza's best?

It was indeed possible, Frieza had sent them on the mother of all suicide missions. He had sent them to fight a symbiote who was tied to the very planet. Vegeta had read on the planet and knew that it's host shared energy with the entire planet making it essentially the same as fighting the planet. Considering Rikku and Naya were nowhere near his previous power level of 18000-or even Nappa's 4000- by a large margin it was essentially a death sentence. But if they somehow survived…

Vegeta's own strength had increased greatly from his loss on E-arth. Considering the odds stacked against them, if Rikku and Naya survived somehow the resulting increase in strength could be astronomical… IF they survived. And it was a huge if. An if with odds stacked against it so high it might as well have been an idea not worth considering.

Vegeta grunted with displeasure. _All these what if's are throwing me off my game. Whoever it is can fend for themselves… Once I gain immortality, no one will be able to get in my way._

The Prince increased his speed as he moved on to a new train of thought.

 _Now where to find a Dragon Ball…_

Vegeta personally knew nothing about the Namekian Dragon Balls but he did have an idea where to start. The locals were bound to know something and it would be a simple matter to interrogate every living soul on the planet. _Somebody_ was bound to know _something._ That and also he would definitely run across one even if the locals knew nothing, discern a pattern and work from there. He would definitely find at least one of those Dragon Balls. He couldn't help fantasizing about how he would kill Frieza and then subjugate the entire Frieza Force.

 _Why stop there? I could take on the entire universe!_

He was heading toward a particularly large cluster of energy when his scouter registered a new signature passing by.

Vegeta smirked at the name that popped up next to it and diverted course.

 _Hmmph… that Dodoria is all alone now. I've been waiting for this…_

Within a few seconds he could see Dodoria flying toward some destination he was as yet unaware of. With a burst of fresh energy Vegeta zoomed in front of Dodoria and cut him off. The big pink alien stopped just short of crashing into the Prince and flew back a respectable distance.

"Hello Dodoria," Vegeta smirked, arms folded as usual. "Been a long time. You and Zarbon are always hanging around Frieza. I've been waiting to get you alone. You're not so tough when Frieza's not around are you?"

"V-Vegeta!" Dodoria responded. "You've got guts showing your face after turning against Lord Frieza. You impudent Saiyan."

Vegeta noted the surprise in his tone but put that aside for now.

He raised an eyebrow. "What the lizard? I was never on your side to begin with."

"I'd be careful what I say from here if I were you," the pink alien said.

At this Vegeta simply smirked with a ' _Do you honestly expect me to stop just cause you say so?'_ kind of expression.

"However if you hand over that scouter," Dodoria continued. " I'm willing to overlook your treachery and put in a good word with Lord Frieza. Unless you're looking to die I suggest you flee from here immediately. I'll give you a pass just this one time, I hope you're grateful."

Vegeta held it out. "You mean this scouter? There's a problem with it."

Dodoria frowned. "And what would that be?"

Vegeta dropped it and crushed it underfoot with a smirk. "It's broken."

"You idiot!" Dodoria shouted. "Now you're as blind as the rest of us!"

"Not quite," Vegeta said smugly. "During my time on E-arth I learned how to sense energy."

Something about that statement clicked in Dodoria's head. He pointed wildly at Vegeta and growled.

"Those people were Earthlings! You sent them there to lure me away from Frieza!"

"What would Earthlings be doing here?" Vegeta said waving one hand dismissively. "Did you hit your head on something?"

A derisive grin spread across the Prince's face. "So what was that about letting me go?"

Vegeta laughed at the idea. "What are you afraid of?"

The laugh and the question gave Dodoria obvious pause. He was clearly nervous about something and Vegeta had a good idea what it was.

"I know, you know about my fight with Kiwi," Vegeta said. "… Now you know I'm far stronger than before. And you are scared…"

Dodoria was starting to sweat ever so slightly.

Vegeta smiled smugly. "You saw my power level on your scouter didn't you?"

"That figure was a mistake! The scouter is broken!" Dodoria countered. "You better not underestimate me!"

Vegeta unfolded his arms. "Come on then."

The big alien shot several giant blasts of energy at Vegeta. The barrage completely missed the Prince who was already behind Dodoria.

"Over here fatso."

Dodoria whirled with a back hand but Vegeta caught it in one hand, leaped over the follow up kick with the hand still in his grip and landed behind Dodoria once again. He caught Dodoria's other hand and then began to pull.

"We Saiyans get stronger every time we fight!" Vegeta said, a wild sort of excitement coursing through him. "The fight on E-arth nearly killed me but since I'm a Saiyan I'm back even stronger than before!"

Vegeta was about to finish off the hapless General when Dodoria cried out, "Vegeta! Wait!"

Vegeta stopped himself mid-pull and waited for the fat General to speak.

"If you let me go I'll tell you a secret..!" Dodoria offered.

"Not interested."

"It's about Planet Vegeta the Saiyan Planet!" Dodoria added desperately.

This gave Vegeta pause. A secret about his planet? What could there possibly be for Dodoria to tell him about his own Planet?

"Planet Vegeta? What secret? Tell me or I'll kill you right now!" Vegeta commanded.

Dodoria took his cue remarkably quickly. "Planet Vegeta was not destroyed by a collision with a huge asteroid, Frieza destroyed it himself along with every Saiyan on it!"

 _Another one trying to turn me onto Frieza instead…_

Dodoria actually chuckled this time. "Sorry if this comes as a shock to you. Now let me go back to Lord Frieza."

Vegeta didn't reply for quite some time. Dodoria was clearly pleased with the shock factor he'd been able to deliver. Until Vegeta finally spoke again…

"Don't get me wrong Dodoria," the Prince said. "I couldn't care less about my planet, my parents, or my fellow Saiyans…"

Dodoria tensed in shock. "No Vegeta…

"What I do care about is that Frieza lied to me and used me!" Vegeta said. "That angers me more than anything else!"

Vegeta booted Dodoria to the ground and began to power up so much the ground was shaking, and a violet aura so dark it appeared red flared to life around him and the entire island like a volcano erupting. Dodoria quickly staggered to his feet and flew into the air but it was too late.

Vegeta aimed a palm at him and launched a wave of energy so huge it swallowed up the entire area in blue light. Dodoria was easily taken and consumed by the blast, not just killed but completely annihilated. Nothing was left at all. Vegeta let out a breath to relax himself and then eased up on his energy output, reducing his power level once again.

 _So Frieza is scared of the Saiyan's potential…_ Vegeta thought. _No surprise there. Selfish lizard that he is. No matter what you told me I was never going to let you live Dodoria. Even if it wasn't something I already knew…_

Vegeta clenched a fist experimentally. _But still I've beaten Dodoria, the one who boasted so much power… My improvement surprises even me._

Another thought nagged him before he could stop it. _And how much more Rikku and Naya if they survived…_

Vegeta shook himself out of his thoughts. He had a Dragon Ball to find. There would be time for all the other things later.

First and foremost he needed to make sure he came out on top of this competition.

 ** _Gohan_**

All three flyers landed at the cave and quickly ducked inside just in case anyone they'd missed was hanging about.

Dende had hidden at the cave entrance when Bulma had started yelling at them for leaving her behind the instant she came out the door but was encouraged by Gohan saying that this was normal. When he finally showed himself Bulma had already finished her tirade.

"And who's this?" she had asked in surprise.

Gohan then proceeded to explain what had happened when he and Krillin had gone looking for the 'Namek' with the large ki. But now it was time for the important things…

"Well I have good news," Bulma said to Gohan. "Dad says that Goku is healed and on his way."

Both Krillin and Gohan cheered.

"It'll take him six days," she added.

They both stopped cheering as the seriousness of their predicament dawned on them. Gohan was particularly worried about how they would gather the Dragon Balls without his father to help them over the course of six days. He and Krillin were nowhere near strong enough and yet they had no time to spare. That Frieza lizard guy had five of the Dragon Balls already and his father was going to take six weeks to get here, not to mention his dad could probably be a match for some of these guys if he used his Kaioken. Probably… Still it was better than two months.

He got an idea and brightened considerably. "We need all seven Dragon Balls to make a wish right? Guys we could just steal one Dragon Ball. That way both nobody can make a wish at all."

Krillin smiled. "Gohan that's brilliant! There's still hope yet. But where do we find that last Dragon Ball?" he mused, raising one hand to his chin in thought.

After a few minutes of thinking, Dende finally raised his hand. Everyone turned to look at him inquisitively.

"You have an idea Dende?" Bulma asked.

"I know where the last Dragon Ball is," Dende offered. "I also have an idea who can help us get the other Dragon Balls back."

"Oh really?" Gohan said, happy once again. "Where are they? How do we reach them?"

"I'll have to take one of you to Elder Guru," Dende said. "You don't know Namek so I can't give directions. My presence will also add to your credibility. The people who can help us are a much simpler case in terms of directions. You just head southeast of this cave until you the guards stop you."

Everyone was pleased. There was hope once again. But Gohan couldn't help confirming…

"Is it the resistance that the murderers at the village mentioned?" Gohan asked.

Krillin and Bulma both watched the small Namekian, waiting for an answer.

Dende shook his head. "No. The three who tried to defend us were the last of them. These guys are completely different, especially in terms of strength. Mind you it's just a rumour, what is concrete though is that one of the strongest Namekians resides there as well so either way it's worth going."

"The strongest Namekian?" Krillin echoed.

"No," Dende corrected him. "One of the strongest. He might be able to help us get back the Dragon Balls at the very least. When any guards stop you just ask for Jepu."

There was silence as everyone considered Dende's idea. Gohan was all for it the only problem was that they couldn't just leave Bulma, she couldn't defend herself at all.

"So how are we doing this?" he asked.

"I will have to lead you to Elder Guru," Dende said. "That is a fact that will not change. Even if I gave you directions without me vouching for you Nail would attack you."

"Nail?" Bulma said with a raised eyebrow.

"Elder Guru's guard," Dende explained. "He is also one of the strongest Namekian warriors left. He is a hero who devoted his life to defending Elder Guru."

There was clear admiration in Dende's tone. Nail was clearly more than just a hero or a guard, he was symbol of strength and nobility and humility. He was very obviously looked up to.

"It's not safe to move around with those people looking for us," Krillin said after a while. "But nothing ventured nothing gained. I'll go with Dende to Elder Guru to take the last Dragon Ball and hide it here."

He looked at Dende, who nodded as he said this.

He turned back to face Gohan and Bulma adding, "Gohan, you can go and find Jepu and the other strong fighters. Then you can come back here and we'll all work out a plan. Try not to take too long. We can't leave Bulma here all alone, especially if those guys come looking for us here."

Gohan nodded. It sounded good given the circumstances.

"Alright. Let's go."

Dende held up a hand. "Aren't you tired?"

Krillin blinked. "Huh?"

"It is currently evening," Dende explained.

"But the sun is still out."

"That is because we have three of them."

Krillin smiled, swaying on his feet. "Ah… no wonder…"

He fell asleep the instant he hit the ground.

 _Frieza's Spaceship_

I kicked the last soldier through the window of the medical room and watched him fall into the lake next to the ship. The resulting influx of air blew around all the sheets stacked in the room and ruffled my Namekian gi. Not for the first time I revelled in how comfortable it was.

Behind me Naya, Kin, Hiyori and Seph had finished up and were gathering in the engine room wondering how to proceed. I joined them there, leaning against one of the walls with my arms folded. The engine room was a large circular room at the very centre of the ship and to which all other rooms connected, each one of which was currently filled with dead or unconscious soldiers. In the middle of it was the engine, a big blue pillar of metal passing from beneath the floor all the way to the ceiling.

"Frieza's not here," Kin said. "Isn't this his ship? Where could he be?"

Naya sat on the blue tiled floor, resting her arms on her knees. "Well we could probably scour the planet and sense for him," she suggested. "But we're only barely on his level right now. Wasting energy like that is going to take away the win."

"Not to mention you'd be doing the scouring on your own," I added. "Well I don't know about the other two but I'm definitely not tagging along. I have business with a certain Prince."

"Don't be so cold man," Seph said, leaning against the engine itself. "They need our help."

I sighed and decided not to answer to that. "I'm going to look for Vegeta now."

Nobody said anything to that so I pushed off the wall in preparation to leave when I noticed a respectable amount of energy coming toward us.

"What is it?" Naya and Seph said at the same time.

"Someone stronger than usual is coming here," I said. "Or should I say some people. There's more than one."

I leaped out the door and through the broken glass of the nearby medical room, landing squarely outside on the blue grass of Namek. The ground felt soft and springy through the Namek canvas shoes but I wasn't very concerned with that at the moment. Shortly afterward everyone landed next to me searching with their own senses. We had covered a lot in training, all of us could sense energy except for Seph and all of us could raise and lower our power levels except for Seph. I felt kind of bad about him not being to utilise ki but I figured it was a good thing anyway, better he master his basics first after all.

"I can feel it too," Naya said. "I wonder who that is."

"You mean you don't know?" Kin asked in surprise.

"Nope," Naya answered. "So what are we doing now?"

"We could just leave you know," Seph pointed out.

"Yes we could," I agreed.

Nobody moved. After a few seconds an entire squads worth of people landed opposite the spaceship all dressed in standard uniform, the black and white kind. All of them had some sort of red war paint, but the one that stood out was the one who actually had brown skin, red hair, red eyes and a green scouter.

"Of all colours you chose green," I scoffed. "That colour combination hurts my eyes."

He smirked in response. "You wear glasses, if I remember correctly. _Any_ colour combination would hurt _your_ eyes."

"Well yours has a certain _blinding_ quality…"

Somewhere off to the side I heard Seph snort.

"Who's that?" Kin asked.

"That's Lart," Naya explained. "Leader of Zithis' personal squad."

"I see you remember me love," Lart said with a charming grin.

He was handsome and strong. He was a natural leader too, Lart had it all and he had made Zithis' personal squad a big name in the Frieza Force. Right up there with Ginyu's people.

Naya's expression turned flat. "Oi. Who's your love here? I'll marry my fist to your face asshole."

"As charming as ever," Lart responded. "Imagine my surprise when a transmission comes in that Saiyans have attacked Frieza's ship. Saiyans!"

He was saying it like it was some impossible feat. I wanted to frown but let it be, he would discover it for himself soon enough.

"And then I get a call from the boss himself that he wants this place checked," Zithis said with a laugh. "Couldn't believe mere Saiyans could achieve this much. Funnily enough when I scanned you none of you are even that strong. Tell me how did you do it? "

"Why would we tell you?" Seph said.

"You're not a Saiyan charcoal boy. Shut it and maybe I'll let you live."

Seph growled in response but made no move to do anything.

For a while both sides stared each other down. But after a few minutes I smiled, at which Lart frowned in confusion. He had time to scan us, which meant he had observed us for a while before coming here. Considering I couldn't sense him before it meant Lart could control his ki, there was a lot he was hiding. What he was asking he already knew which meant one thing…

I looked at the top right corner of his scouter and saw the small blip that indicated his comms were on. Easily missed if you weren't paying attention.

"Good job Lart," I congratulated him. "You're an excellent soldier, really. Well you on the other end of his comms, Zithis isn't it? Yes, it's who you think it is. I don't know if Frieza is with you-"

I noted Lart's frown deepening at the mention of Frieza without Lord and nearly laughed.

"-but yes it's Rikku and Naya from Vegeta's team. The one you so nicely decided to call the Saiyan Army, really we appreciate the name and how thoughtful you were in trying to maintain it."

My voice was oozing sarcasm. "Yup we decided your face is annoying so we attacked your ship for shits and giggles. We've got guests who want to kill you so stay on your toes."

Naya immediately blew the scouters off the entire squad's faces with one finger before any one of them could so much as blink.

"And that's that," she said.

"Was that really a good idea?" Kin asked. Hiyori was keeping silent, simply observing like she usually did.

"Yup. The old lizard isn't gonna let that fly," I said. "He'll come to us now."

Lart looked displeased. "You aren't ignoring me are you Rikku? You know that's a bad idea."

I shrugged. "Perhaps."

"So Kin, Hiyori. How do you want to do this? Are you going to wait here for Frieza?" I asked.

In a flash Lart was in my face, his fist already flying. I stopped it with a finger. Displaced air ruffled the grass around us for a few feet but that was all he achieved. I grinned at the expression of shock on his face and let him leap back to gain some distance, not that with the current difference in strength between us it would make much difference.

His squad members also looked surprised. After all last they heard Lart was easily my superior in every way. As far as they were concerned anyway.

I turned to Kin and Hiyori and saw them look at each other. Eventually Kin looked at me and said, "We'll wait here. Frieza is bound to come here at some point. After all it's his ship."

I couldn't help jabbing. "You're really holding on to this it's his ship thing aren't you."

Kin just grinned and sat down cross legged. Hiyori followed suit, remaining silent.

I glanced at Seph. "And you?"

"I'll stay and help them out."

"There's nothing you want to do?" I asked.

He shook his head. "No. Not really no."

I nodded. "Alright then."

"And us?" Naya asked me.

I raised an eyebrow. "You're coming with me?"

She snorted. "Obviously."

I looked at Lart and his assortment of tattooed misfits. "Well I'm going to plough right through these guys and go find Vegeta. He wasn't at the ship which leaves two options, he died somewhere or he's here gathering Dragon Balls for whatever reason."

Knowing Vegeta he would use them for himself if he ever got the chance. After all he hated Frieza, why give something so valuable to an enemy.

Lart growled. "Get them."

His squad charged Naya and I. I was using less than a quarter of my strength but it was so easy. They were by no means weak but I was simply so much stronger, their blows were easy to follow despite their speed and they lacked weight despite their might. Being stronger made things such a breeze, the only reason I could even tell my enemies were strong was how their movements affected the environment. The small booms whenever I blocked one of their hits and the little blasts of rock as they leaped off the ground or threw kicks.

Five of them tried to knock me flying as a group, so far I hadn't moved an inch. I stopped all of their individual attacks with the five fingers of my right hand. I pushed them back like that and followed up with a small ki blast. It exploded on top of all five and left them lying in a smoking heap some distance away.

"You're turning into a real finger style master," Naya noted, offhandedly knocking the last of her own opponents aside with a flick.

"Why use your whole body when a finger will suffice," I countered with a shrug. "Besides I see you doing the same."

She grinned. "It's fun."

"If you two are done showing off you can go now," Seph said from behind.

Throughout the small scuffle I had noticed Lart slowly losing his cool but now he was calm, collected. Additionally, I noticed a rise in his energy. He was currently over twice as strong as when he first showed up.

"As I thought, you can control your power level," I said. "You're still hiding things."

"So you noticed," he responded, unsurprised. "I'd rather not destroy Lord Frieza's ship, how about we take this elsewhere?"

"Don't feel like it," I refused, starting to levitate.

"Even if I'm not going to fight you?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. _You specifically just said you don't want to destroy the ship. The hell else were you planning to do then?_

I sighed. It was worth checking at least, it wasn't like I couldn't cross this planet in minutes anyway. I gestured for him to show the way and turned to Naya.

"You can do whatever you like since I'll be occupied," I said.

"Nah, I'm curious now. I'm coming too."

She joined me in the air and we both waited for Zithis who then flew off toward the west. We quickly followed him making sure not to lose sight of him, but at the same time taking care not to get too close in case he tried something funny.

As we travelled I realized that Namek, despite it's odd colours was a surprisingly beautiful place. Like some kind of abstract painting by some artist obsessed with blue and green. It occurred to me that a description like that sounded pretty awful and mentally shrugged.

 _That's why I'm a soldier not an artist._

"Here is good," Lart said, interrupting my thoughts.

I looked down below at a small island he was pointing toward and followed him down. There was a single tree next to the island that I landed next to making sure to keep my back toward it so there would be no surprise attacks from behind. Naya had much the same idea as me while Lart touched down facing us.

"Ok so what did you want?" I said. "I dislike wasting time."

Lart sighed. "As antagonistic as always."

"I'm not antagonistic, I'm truthful."

"Well that particular truth was unnecessary wasn't it?"

"Just because you won't like it doesn't mean it's unnecessary neither does it mean I shouldn't say it. Are you here to lecture me or do you actually have something important to say?"

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "This will take me nowhere with you. Straight to the point it is."

"I want you to hold off on going after Vegeta," Lart said. "Or more accurately it would be beneficial to Zithis if you held off on going after Vegeta right now."

I gave him a flat look. "You're not very good at this whole dealing thing are you…"

He frowned, folding his arms. "I was merely proposing what I wanted you to-"

I waved a hand dismissively. "Sure sure. But you do know I couldn't care less what you want, what you should have said was this is how doing what I want benefits you instead of waiting for me to ask why. I'm not going to ask why. I'm here because _you_ asked me here, not the other way round you follow?"

"You are seriously starting to annoy me."

"Get annoyed, attack me, then we kill you. Either way is fine with me."

He gritted his teeth in displeasure, hands flying to rest on his waistline as he paced to recover his temper. I honestly wasn't harassing him but I was beginning to consider it.

 _There's an order to things you moron_ , I mentally chastised him.

I was very nearly enjoying myself. Nearly.

He finally faced me again, hands still on his waist and said, "Here's the deal. Zithis has a job to do and serving Frieza is getting in the way of the job. Vegeta is currently raising hell and getting in Frieza's way, which in this case is good for Zithis... because Frieza will likely send him out if this keeps up."

I could see he wasn't comfortable using Zithis' name on its own. There was clearly a title attached to it that he couldn't share with us. A smirk adorned my lips as I briefly considered asking him, _Tell me, is it Daddy?_

Lart noticed the look on my face and frowned again. "You're making fun of me aren't you?"

I immediately schooled my expression. "Heavens no."

 _I'm only thinking about making fun of you. I'm not quite there yet…_

I held back a snort and kept my face as flat as possible. "Please go on. I'm hearing a whole lot of your benefits there, just sayin'."

Lart sighed and said, "Moving on, if Vegeta keeps raising hell for Frieza it's good for Zithis. If you confront him, I'm quite sure he's going to stop or something is going to change that we can't afford to. However Zithis assignments have been targeting you for quite some time, the entire time you've been here in fact."

 _He and Zithis have known we were here since we arrived? Oh yeah they can probably sense ki…_

"You've finally got to the news that matters," I said, leaning against the tree. "And why pray tell, should I care about this?"

"Honestly, I don't know," Lart said. "But aren't you curious at all?"

I thought about it. "No."

At this point Naya cut in, "Actually Rikku it might be a good idea to check it out. We have no idea what opportunities meeting with them may offer…"

"Or it may not be a meeting but an assassination attempt for one of the God knows how many people we've killed in Frieza's name," I countered. "And really, we came to this planet for one person. Why overcomplicate things?"

"One more thing," Lart added. "Once Zithis is sent after Vegeta he promises to spare his life."

"That's a non-issue," I said without a second thought. "Butt out, lackey."

I then proceeded to ignore the dirty look he gave me.

If Vegeta was truly looking out for us we would simply stand together against Zithis. If not he would be fair game for Zithis…

"You make a good point Rikku," Naya admitted. "But it's still worth checking because of the unknown potential."

"That point goes both ways," I pointed out.

"True," she said with a shrug. "But they have interest in us. There is something they see that they want from us…"

"And it may be something of value that we don't know about, I see what you mean," I finished for her, raising a finger to my chin in thought.

"Oh so you _can_ be persuaded, would you look at that?" Lart said sarcastically.

"Persuasion implies agreement. I haven't decided whether I'll do it or not."

I could practically _feel_ his exasperation from where I was. It amused me.

"I also have information on the Saiyan race, but only if you agree to my proposal," Lart burst out.

"And what could you possibly tell me about the Saiyan race that I don't already know?" I said suspiciously. "I have no idea what the worth of your info is. Between us, we're the Saiyans here not you."

I swished my tail to emphasize the point.

Lart smirked for the first time in a while. "Ordinarily, that would be true. But there are some things you know nothing about and that's your history for one. You also don't know Frieza's plans for you."

"You know if you were smart you'd have led with that first," I observed.

The smirk was gone again. "You're being very rude RIkku. Tread carefully. As strong as you are now, I am still your superior."

Inwardly I bristled at the warning. It was a true statement that I'd made and the fact he found it so upsetting was annoying. If he hated it so much all he had to do was stop saying stupid things. I felt like stepping up to the challenge but thought about all the other things I could be doing. I'd lost my temper, but I kept myself very calm.

"I'm leaving now," I said coldly. "I've lost interest in dealing with you."

I turned to leave.

"So you refuse to show me respect even when you stand to lose…" he said finally.

I didn't look back. "That's because I don't respect you, Lart. I hate you. I hate Zithis and I hate Frieza and if things are as they seem, Vegeta's getting on my shit list very soon. If this deal was really important to you you'd have recognised that and kept your mouth shut. I'm done here. Good talk."

I blasted off into the skies without even waiting to see if he had changed his mind. A short while afterward Naya caught up with me, her expression serious. She could tell I was displeased.

"So what now?" she asked.

"I'm going to find whoever it is Zithis is supposed to go after and find out what they want," I said. "And you?"

"Well I'm not going after Vegeta without you," she answered. "I suppose I'll try to find out about this Saiyan history they've been talking about."

"You could just ask Vegeta," I pointed out.

"Well true but I don't want to go without you," she admitted. "And even so I'd like to know what the rest of the force could possibly know. Also Frieza has plans for us, I'd like to know what they are."

"So you'll be re-joining Seph and the others?"

"No. Besides Frieza and his right hand men there's someone who should be up to date with everything that Frieza does…"

I frowned in thought. "His accountant? Would such a person even be here right now?"

Naya laughed. "Doubtful, but they'll have to keep records for the accountant anyway. They can do this with paper or there's going to be a log of some kind, a system. I'll steal a high ranking soldier's password and use it to go through the logs. We killed practically everyone so there should be a corpse with access."

I smiled. "You've clearly got yourself all figured out. Alright, I'll be seeing you then."

She nodded. "You too. Just one thing Rikku…"

I raised an eyebrow. "Hmmm?"

"Don't do anything beyond you… Please…"

"…. I'll keep that in mind."

She nodded. "I can work with that."

With that she swerved off back to the Space ship while I kept flying straight. As I flew I made sure to avoid all clusters of energy that I could sense, aiming for the dead zone of the entire planet. As I flew there I found myself wondering what exactly it was that Frieza was planning to do with us. Well in all fairness we were a warrior race that had made vast increases in strength since we began our conquest according to Nappa. Of all the warriors in the Force we had the greatest potential, perhaps Frieza was seeking to enhance that potential for his own aims?

It couldn't be that simple, look how easily Naya and I had achieved very nearly the same strength as Frieza. If we would only get stronger from here, would we still take orders from Frieza? The truth was probably not, Naya and I only did what Frieza said because Vegeta said to and because Vegeta gave us orders that he took from Frieza. And once he was stronger than Frieza it was doubtful that Vegeta would take orders from Frieza because if there was one thing I knew about our Prince, it's that he was prideful. Very prideful.

If Frieza was aware of this would he still entertain thoughts of using us for his own benefit? Definitely not… if there was one thing you could be sure about when it came to Frieza it was that he cared little for anything other than himself. If we were a threat he would eliminate us without question.

I frowned in thought as the Namekian landscape flashed by beneath me like a movie on fast forward. Perhaps the information Lart intended to bribe me with was that Frieza planned to eliminate us at some later date? Well someone had sabotaged our pods to Veridia, would it be a stretch that it was on orders from Frieza? No, it wouldn't be but then anyone could have done it for any reason honestly speaking. We had no shortage of enemies in the Force. Everyone hated us.

Nothing was concrete. What was concrete was that Vegeta knew something he wasn't sharing and that was what I had honed in on from the start of this mess. Upon reaching the centre of the dead zone I searched for a place to land and noticed a small island with a total of about three trees evenly spaced out. I landed between them and sat down quietly, closing my eyes once seated.

It occurred to me briefly that Lart may have been acting so he could buy time for Zithis by irritating me. I eventually shrugged off that thought, after all he may still have been telling the truth and really Vegeta wasn't going anywhere for a while. If he died though, there would be hell to pay and I was quite sure Lart knew this.

I remained seated for quite some time after this. I had no idea how long. Time passed and I found myself buried in various thoughts, thoughts that were constantly pushing, always supressed, yet always nagging in the back of my mind. I sat until the heat of the sun reduced by a large margin, which told me that the third sun of Namek went down and only two were up in the sky, illuminating the island as if it was still day time. More thoughts, things I could've done better, things I had failed at, my successes by comparison, people who had made me miserable, the few who had made me smile…

I sat and ruminated on them, waiting for someone to show up. If the people Lart mentioned were looking for me this was their best chance.

While I did this I made sure to monitor all the energy signatures on Namek. I let my senses roam, easily locating Naya in Frieza's space ship, Seph, Kin and Hiyori all waiting outside half asleep, Lart heading toward a small cluster of ki signatures, Shinpa in his village with Jepu right next to him. There was a respectable energy signature facing them, nothing too special. I didn't much care who that was…

I felt one of the clusters of ki disappear as a strong one stood in the middle of it all, I wasn't sure who that was but clearly they'd just destroyed one of the Namekian villages. More time passed and eventually I started ruminating on Naya's parting words…

 _Don't do anything beyond you…_

I scoffed in my head. When had I ever been able to do _anything_ when it mattered most? In the Cages, all the times before and after that, and even recently with Sanza… I was never good enough when I needed to be. Always making stupid mistakes, always coming so close or never getting the chance to make a move no matter how hard I tried. I'm weak and I'm tired… and she knew that, hence the request.

 _It's been what… eight years now?_

I shook my head and stood up for the first time in hours, stretching to get rid of the stiffness. I couldn't let those thoughts ruin my mood. I could do better, I could keep moving, become stronger…

 _Even if you're alone? Even when, you are you? Your greatest enemy is yourself, that practical mindset you have… All you've achieved is the reverse… you are weaker now than you were before…_

I ignored that thought and walked to the edge of the island to wash my face.

 _Even when the few you loved turned on themselves what could you do? Always losing… always failing when it's important. Never reliable…_

"Alright, training it is," I said out loud.

And for the next few hours I devoted myself to my forms, focusing on my offensive ones most of all. I didn't raise my power level; I wanted to do it with my physiological traits alone, unenhanced by ki. Even without ki, thanks to my Saiyan heritage I was still strong enough to knock down trees (even thought it would hurt if I used my bare hands) and I was able to keep going till the third sun came back up in the sky. It was officially the next day by Namekian reckoning.

I took an hour to rest, just meditating in the warmth of the three suns of Namek. The water ebbed against the grassy edges of the small island, and the breeze created both a soothing caress on my skin and nice ambience to calm my mind.

It was then that the sound of two footsteps touching the ground eased into my ears. A light touchdown… whoever it was had been flying.

I opened my eyes to see a stranger in a hooded brown cloak. One thing was clear, whoever it was oozed power like never before. They made Frieza look like a joke…

I remained calm. "I hear you've been looking for me."

"You will hear my voice twice in this encounter…" came the urgent reply. "This marks the first time. Pay close attention to the second time. It is the most important."

 _That's what? Four sentences? Technically I've heard your voice four times already…_

I didn't say that out loud. "Sure sure. So what do you want?"

They said nothing.

In the next instant there was a kick slicing through the air toward me.

* * *

 **Rikku- 160,000**

 **Naya-180,000**

 **Kin-150,000**

 **Hiyori- 140,000**

 **Seph-200,000**

 **Jepu-50,000**

 **Not gonna offer much in the way of commentary here. Vegeta and the standard DBZ characters power levels don't deviate from canon so far so I won't add them in.**


	13. Chapter 12

**Always feel free to point out any errors and help me keep my writing on track. I do make notes... I just throw them away a lot XD**

* * *

 **Chapter 12**

 _ **Gohan**_

The very next morning according to Dende, the members of the cave had left on their various errands leaving Bulma behind to inform those on earth of the new threat greater even than Vegeta. After that Gohan had spent about an hour trying to find Elder Shinpa's village without being found by the soldiers from before or appearing hostile to any Nameks he happened to come across. Naturally it was slow going but now he had found Elder Shinpa's village.

Gohan stood eyeing the Namekian he had now come to know as Jepu very carefully. Next to him Elder Shinpa was frowning in thought and all around them were approximately four guards. They were standing outside some sort of giant white arch that served as the entrance to Shinpa's village. It looked like any other Namekian village, blue grass, white spiky huts blue trees and open space in the middle. Nothing special.

"I remember Dende…," Shinpa mused. "Tiny little thing he was."

Gohan's thought echoed what he dared not say. _Uhhh… you're tiny too…_

"Still it's very surprising that rumours of our guests got out," Jepu said. "I can understand Dende sending you to get my help, but he mentioned other warriors?"

Gohan nodded. "Yes, sir. He said it was probably just a rumour but you were still the best person to come to for help."

"I see…" Jepu said.

He didn't look convinced to Gohan, but the small boy knew that that was all he knew so he remained calm. Or at least he tried to, Jepu was intimidating even though he clearly wasn't trying to be. He was almost as intense as Piccolo-san if not more so. He wished Krillin were with him.

Jepu looked around at his men. "I wonder which one of you spilled something…? There _will_ be a flogging when I find out."

All four looked very nervous but none answered him. Jepu let his gaze linger on them.

Shinpa finally spoke up. "Well, it's pretty much out of the bag now, the resistance is gone too last I heard. Frieza has five Dragon Balls you said and your friend is on the way to collect the sixth from Guru. That leaves one missing, where is that one? All the villages holding Dragon Balls have been destroyed according to our scouts."

Gohan shook his head. "I don't know. I could probably search for it."

Shinpa waved the idea aside. "Never mind. The point is to stop this Frieza, get the Dragon Balls and wish him dead, then wish the people he killed alive. Take him to them Jepu."

Gohan blinked. "Huh?"

Jepu frowned. "But who will protect the village and you?"

"That is a problem, but right now the planet takes priority. Take him to the Saiyans."

Gohan's jaw dropped. _What?!_

 _ **Zithis**_

If not for the fact that Frieza was unwilling to return to the ship a lot of people would be dead right now, Zithis mused. He could sense Naya only just now leaving Frieza's space ship. Three of them remained behind, which left Zithis wondering if perhaps the plan was to wait for Frieza and confront him at his ship. In all honesty Zithis thought it would have been best to go back to the ship anyway seeing as they had no scouters which was the equivalent of having no map but Frieza seemed to have other ideas. They had spent ages looking for something or other and Frieza wasn't saying what it was.

Zarbon also seemed confused as to what Frieza was doing. They had come to some sort of deep crevice at the bottom of which was a space ship. Very high class clearly and its owner would have no way out except to fly. Frieza led the way down and Zithis and Zarbon followed.

Leaning against the ship with her arms folded was a female of questionable origin. She was of average height for a woman, which to Zithis meant she was short but room was being made for gender differences.

What truly interested him was that it was someone he was quite familiar with. Thankfully she did not betray him.

"I saw you on my scouter and I wanted to see you in person, Shia," Frieza said as his opening statement.

She nodded. "Sure."

The response was muffled by the purple mask she had covering the lower half of her face like a bandanna. The mask was actually a part of and therefore connected to the tight sleeveless, cut-off top she was wearing, said garment serving to expose a slender but very well-toned body and arms. She had muscle without the size, such people generally had deceptive strength and indeed she was one to be feared. What skin showed was dark brown… a very exotic looking colour that Zithis often did not run into.

Beneath that were baggy black trousers and simple navy blue boots, the soft light kind used for martial arts. Holding the trousers in place was a navy blue cloth belt, tied into a firm knot.

Frieza gave a small, smug smile. "I've run into a bit of trouble and I was hoping to borrow your services once again."

Shia didn't say anything and simply waited for Frieza to say something else.

"Well, all my scouters have been destroyed," the tyrant continued. "Everyone on my ship has been most likely killed as well and I find myself very averse to having to deal with all of this myself. What do you say to helping me gather a few items of interest?"

"The Dragon Balls? No, I'm on another assignment."

"Naturally, you will be paid," Frieza added, seemingly unsurprised by her knowledge of the Dragon Balls.

"No means no. We're done."

At this Zarbon finally spoke up, "You cannot speak to Lord Frieza in such a demeaning manner. Know your place."

So fast Zithis could barely follow it, a beam was lancing through the air toward Zarbon. Thankfully for him, Frieza knocked it aside with the tip of his tail at the last minute. Zarbon stood there stunned that someone had so blatantly tried to kill him even in front of Frieza. Zithis almost laughed.

 _You'd best watch what you say around her Zarbon… this one is a bit more dangerous than Frieza, even if your Lord doesn't know it yet._

"So sorry Shia," Frieza said in mock regret. "Unfortunately I need that one. Allow me to use your communications for a minute or two to order a supply delivery of scouters."

She shrugged and jammed one leg against the space ship, causing a small communicator to fly out and land in Frieza's outstretched palm.

The tyrant proceeded to activate it with a thank you. A small projection rose up on the surface of the flat disk but before Frieza could say anything, Zithis chest comm beeped. Zithis pressed a finger to his collar bone.

"Lart? You have another report to make?"

They had overheard his conversation with Rikku naturally and Frieza had been listening in. The lizard had seemed none too worried about the young Saiyan's threat to his life or about his disrespectful attitude. It had made Zithis wonder if perhaps Frieza had things under control, what with how relaxed he was in the face of all these things. He probably was, that or he was confident in his own strength. It was most likely the latter Zithis guessed considering he knew that everything on this planet was a gnat in comparison to Frieza's full _true_ strength.

 _Well nearly everything…_

"Indeed sir, it's about the assignment Lord Frieza sent me on. To find Dodoria."

"Go on."

"He's dead sir. I didn't find much left of him. The entire place is scorched too…"

Indeed, Vegeta's Galaxy Breaker tended to do that…

"You've confirmed he's dead?"

"Well a bit of pink skin was all I could find, my scouter's been destroyed too so I can't scan for him. I feel quite sure he's dead though, if the blast was this large and capable of peeling skin off him I doubt he was able to get away in time."

"Thank you, Lart."

Zithis turned toward Frieza who had been watching him the entire time.

"Dodoria is dead," Zithis said. "Vegeta killed him."

Frieza frowned. "Now there's a soldier who was actually useful. It's just one thing after another since I got here."

Zithis decided to play the loyal soldier and said, "I can go after Vegeta, Lord Frieza."

Frieza shook his head. "I have other plans for you two. Zarbon, you and Zithis will go and bring the remaining Dragon Balls to me. Zithis tell your man to keep scouting. He should focus on finding whoever's left of my men as well as finding Dragon Balls."

Zithis nodded and placed his hand on his collar bone, already delivering the command. He made sure not to betray his pleasure with the situation in any way.

Zarbon now recovered from Shia's attack said, "Forgive me my Lord but where would you be once we obtain them?"

"I'm just going to make two calls with this…" Frieza said, waving the communicator offhandedly. "After that…"

Frieza's expression darkened with a smile that promised murder.

"… **I'm going back to my ship."**

 _ **Zarbon**_

Shortly after receiving their orders from Lord Frieza, Zarbon and Zithis were both flying in the Namek skies already on the search. Neither had a scouter but Zithis moved with a purpose that made Zarbon feel like he was slacking altogether too much. It was infuriating. Lord Frieza moved on his whims and any guarantee of stability of life style in the Frieza Force came from his benevolence. Additionally, Zarbon enjoyed being his Lord's right hand man. Anything that made him look bad was naturally very upsetting to him.

To be fair Zithis had been making everyone else look bad from day one. He was about to say something to break the silence when Zithis spoke first.

"I'm sure that's important Zarbon but I'd rather not know," the red skinned soldier said. "I would like to split up. Neither of us have scouters at this point so covering more ground is the sensible option."

Zarbon frowned as anger boiled in him but he kept his cool. "I suppose that's best."

Without further ado Zithis shot off into the distance, leaving Zarbon at the cruising speed he had been maintaining. The blue skinned warrior fumed within as he searched for more villages without the one tool he needed to do so. That red skinned piece of trash was insufferable! Oh if only he knew the true extent of Zarbon's power _then_ he'd take him more seriously. And this wasn't even considering that even with the lack of scouters making the search difficult that arrogant jerk _still_ seemed in control.

So distracted was he by thoughts of Zithis elitist attitude towards the rest of the Force that he never noticed Vegeta incoming until he collided with him.

"Vegeta!" Zarbon exclaimed involuntarily.

"Hello Zarbon," the Saiyan Prince responded with a smirk, clearly having made the collision intentionally.

Zarbon glared. "I don't have time for this Vegeta. Step aside or I _will_ kill you."

Vegeta grinned now. "Well someone already got your thong in a tizzy before me it seems. Good, that makes things simpler for me."

Zarbon quickly caught on to what Vegeta was trying to imply. He found himself irritated both by the comment, by his near death experience, Zithis elitism and now more recently, Vegeta's insufferable attitude.

"Come then," Zarbon beckoned, flicking his hair out of his eyes. "All you've seen of me is beauty. Today you will meet the beast."

 _ **Krillin**_

Vegeta had been following them a short while back but had suddenly diverted course for which Krillin was grateful. However going by what he could sense going on back there the bald human knew Vegeta wouldn't be capable of following _anyone_ for a good while and for that Krillin was grateful. He only prayed whoever was laying into the Saiyan threat wasn't going to come this way as well.

Guru's place was to the northeast of Planet Namek, guarded by only one Namekian in a blue vest, white trousers tied with blue belt and a white collar despite having no shirt. He stood in front of the small white building with his arms behind his back watching Krillin and Dende come closer. Once they landed in front of him he proceeded to speak.

"Welcome," he said. "Elder Guru has been expecting you."

Krillin was surprised. "He has?"

The Namekian nodded and Dende cut in, asking "Then he is aware of all that is going on? Why hasn't he run away to somewhere safe?"

The smaller Namekian was trembling clearly upset at the deaths of his people. The idea of one more person being in danger was clearly a lot for him to take. It also told Krillin how important this Elder Guru was. Dende had spoken of him this morning on the way to this place. How a catastrophe had hit Namek and threatened to wipe everyone out and while others ran away only Guru stayed and survived. It was he who then repopulated planet Namek by laying eggs (Krillin still couldn't get over this part), as a result literally everyone on Namek was a son of Guru. Father of a planet… it was a stunning feat.

The guard bowed his head. "Elder Guru… does not have long."

Dende froze in shock. "I'd known he was old but I never thought he was anywhere near ready to die…"

They followed the tall Namekian inside the small house they had been standing in front of. It was a simple single room with a large throne at the centre, Namekians clearly didn't need much to survive. On the throne sat the biggest Namekian Krillin had ever seen. The Earthling barely reached his shins not that he was tall to begin with. A more apt comparison would be that the seven foot tall guard could only reach his knees. Elder Guru was massive and obese and old. Other than that he looked like any other Namekian. Krillin was only getting to tell the difference because they all had different face structures. The guard however was throwing him off, he looked too much like Piccolo.

For the longest time Elder Guru was silent.

"Maybe he's asleep?" Krillin ventured.

"Possibly," Dende said. "He is old and must rest often."

It was then that the giant Namekian looked down at Krillin. "Welcome, allow me to thank you for rescuing Dende. Feeling the deaths of my sons has been a painful experience."

Krillin nearly jumped out of his skin in surprise. He nodded his acceptance nervously. He could only imagine that feeling.

"Great evil has come to this planet," Guru continued. "So tell me… what brings you to Namek?"

Krillin proceeded to recount everything that had happened until now. How Raditz had shown up on Earth, then Vegeta and Nappa, the death of their friends and how they wanted to wish them back with the Dragon balls and how that was why they were here. He even explained how they first came to know about the Dragon balls from so many years ago. Having told Dende this story the night before when they had woken up for supper while they ate, the diminutive Namekian was nodding along to the tale. They had faced many adventures… Krillin was well aware that telling Guru everything would be taking a while…

Hopefully no one would catch him before this chat was over.

 _ **RIkku**_

I lay on the hot ground, the sky waving in and out of focus like some kind of kaleidoscope on drugs.

 _This makes how many knockouts now? Eight? Ten?_

I tried to move and my body merely trembled violently in response. I was thoroughly beaten with absolutely no chance of getting back up to finish things. It was a heavy blow to my pride in my skills that I hadn't even gotten _a touch_ through that defence no matter how strategic, cunning or downright deadly I was being whereas _my defence_ had been punched through multiple times like it was so much tissue. Truly beaten in every sense of the word.

"You're awake again."

I didn't bother looking in the figure's direction. "I give up. Kill me or whatever, I'm done."

It was silent for several minutes just looking at me, waiting. I couldn't move and I had nothing else to say so I just waited until eventually it spoke again.

"Your reflexes are slow, fix them. When the time comes and you need more strength than you currently have dig into the power within. You have a long way to go before you are of use to anyone."

"I take it you're leaving me then."

It said nothing and simply held out a hand charged with energy.

A random thought flew through my head. _Oh joy. This is how I'm going to go out. Skills proven redundant and all my life's work worthless._

Then I frowned. _Wait… do I even have a life's work? I don't think I do…. Do I?_

The energy hit and instead of vaporising me like I expected it charged me back up to a respectable level of strength.

I sat up, trembling slightly. My power had recovered but my body was in no condition to use it effectively.

 _My skills were definitely proven redundant though._

"How annoying…" I murmured. "Yeah I think I'm upset."

The figure was probably unsure what to make of what of my words which was why it simply pretended I had said nothing.

"You have potential," it said. "Remember power is not ki. Power is manifested through ki. I'll be back to test you again."

I stood up and looked around for it only to realise it was gone. I hadn't heard a sound or even seen or sensed ki being utilised. It was just gone.

"Tch! Too late."

I looked around just as Zithis burst onto the scene in a blast of red ki, landing on the ground with enough force to make a small crater. He moved quickly, eyes scanning the area for anything that was not me and growled when he found nothing.

"Looking for a Dragon Ball?" I asked, folding my arms. "There isn't one here."

Zithis turned and glared at me.

"Then again just before you got upset with the ground you said something about being too late," I continued. "Were you perhaps looking for the guy who just left?"

At this Zithis eyes narrowed. "Where did he go?"

"Ah so it was a male, would you look at that. Learn something new every day."

"Stop wasting my time."

"You're wasting your own time. Dude came along, beat me ten times in a row for what I can only assume to be shits and giggles and left."

Zithis considered this. After a moment he said, "You're coming with me then."

I held out my hands. "Whatever, I've lost my will to fight today. Mind telling me how you know him?"

Zithis ignored the question and bound my hands using some kind of cuffs made of ki. I tested them, acknowledged that I would not be able to snap them and waited for him to answer me.

"Yes I do mind," came the answer.

"Ah then you know him. Where from? The Force? Space? Freelance organisation…? Just an organisation?"

Zithis lips tightened.

"An organisation then. So what is he to you? Friend? Enemy? Partner? Target- Ah a target."

Zithis glared. "I was unaware you could read minds."

I shrugged. "It's a talent, what can I say. I'm me. I amaze me all the time."

What I was actually doing was reading his face but he didn't need to know that.

"Stop talking."

"Why?"

"I will kill you."

"And you will lose the only lead you have on tracking whoever your target is down," I countered. Even as I spoke my mind was already sifting through the information. Who was in the habit of calling people targets? Soldiers of course. Also hitmen.

Outside organisation. Target.

"You're an assassin aren't you?" I said.

Zithis became unnaturally still for several seconds. That reaction told me all I needed to know. Even if he wasn't actually an assassin, what he did was clearly close enough for the unexpected comment to shake him. And the fact that my finding out shook him at all told me another thing: He wasn't comfortable with his job for some reason.

"I've underestimated you," Zithis said eventually, stepping back.

I raised an eyebrow.

"I thought you were just a dumb ape like the rest of your Saiyan Army," he said. "Losing yourself in fights and other equally trivial things like petty pride."

"So pride is meaningless to you?"

"Pride is useful, yours simply tends to be petty."

"I find the petty kind most satisfying though."

"Naturally, it's why you're the ape."

"Now that's just offensive."

"Apparently I'm famous for it," Zithis agreed. "But more importantly, you're talking so much and trying to get under my skin because you lost to my target and that upsets you."

I saw what he was driving at and smirked. "I freely admit, that's entirely possible or I may be trying to pick your brains for information because I want to beat him to a bloody pulp for this humiliation. Whichever theory suits you. Of course, I could also be doing this for shits and giggles and neither of those theories is correct including the one proposed in this very sentence. I have a nasty habit of doing whatever I like."

"You've never been this talkative."

"I didn't have a reason to be."

"Then are you hiding him?"

"I'm a Saiyan, do I look like someone who hides people I lose to?"

"Or you could be doing that because you want to beat him yourself."

Zithis was very astute I knew. He was the best in the Force for a reason.

"Hide him from _you?"_ I said without a hint of malice or arrogance. "I currently have power comparable to Frieza's and I lost. You honestly think I'd be worried about you beating him before me? Say by some miracle he did lose to you and die… next best thing would be to come after you."

I didn't say I was aware that Zithis was perhaps stronger than he looked. I didn't imply how I had noticed Lart increased his power level as a precaution when we ran into him, which let me know that he was far stronger than he let on. Seeing as Lart was Zithis' subordinate it stood to reason Zithis could do the same. But how many people knew that? There was no way Frieza would hire someone stronger than himself. He'd kill them plain and simple.

Zithis was silent for several seconds. "Believable but I'm surprised you're making this argument while wearing my cuffs. Surely you must have realized by now that you can't snap them."

I shrugged. "Like my Crush Cannon they may have unique properties that allow you to hurt, or in this case bind, people far more powerful than you. Stranger things have happened."

Zithis nodded. "I see. That is true."

He gestured and the cuffs pulled me gently into the air as he rose off the ground.

"Then let me be the first to tell you," Zithis said, as we both ascended and slowly turned in the direction of Frieza's ship. "Frieza and I are the only ones in the entire Force capable of controlling our power levels. I taught Lart so I may as well include him."

My insides turned cold, like I'd swallowed an ice block that wouldn't go down.

"Additionally," Zithis continued. "We can transform into far more powerful forms. What you have now is merely a fraction of the power Frieza possesses in his weakest form. Zarbon cannot control his power level but he can transform as well, although admittedly he's no threat to you."

"I'm more than capable of killing you all on my own," Zithis said quietly.

The ice block became an ice _berg_ and lodged itself firmly in my chest. Words failed me. Kin was going to die, Hiyori was going to die and if nothing had changed Naya was still at Frieza's ship looking for records of any plans Frieza may have had for the Saiyan race which meant, she would die too.

At another gesture from Zithis the cuffs jerked me forward at speed and we both went tearing across the Namekian sky. As we flew I looked back and saw the guy in the brown cloak standing on the island watching us go. If he was thankful for my covering him, it didn't show. But Zithis was right, I was hiding him. I wanted to beat him myself first and foremost because for some reason that mattered to me at the moment. But right now there were far more important things to think about, we had gravely underestimated the Frieza Force's elite and we were all about to pay dearly.

 _ **Zarbon**_

Zarbon floated above the crater next to the lake, watching the brutally beaten Saiyan Prince. He had been stronger than the General expected and had forced him to transform but now the little ape was deep in the dirt where trash like him belonged. Zarbon relaxed his body, pushing down the rage and violence that allowed him to become the beast he was now and increase his power.

The scales disappeared, his muscles shrunk and his handsome features returned once more. He flicked his hair just as the wall of the crater closest to the lake burst broke down and all the water flooded in.

"If that didn't kill him," Zarbon reflected. "The water will certainly drown him."

He turned away, looking around. "This search is ridiculous without scouters… Might as well inform Frieza that Vegeta has been taken care of."

He shot off into the distance.

 _ **Naya**_

She searched through the terminal once more to make sure that was absolutely everything there was on Saiyans and sat back from the screen. Naya was stunned, amazed beyond belief. In the Frieza Force Ledgers there was a medical account for the Saiyan Army with funds that far exceeded what was reasonable. Indeed, they had extremely high medical costs on account of the torture and suicide missions but Frieza always made sure to keep them functioning and not much more than that. And yet medical expenses rivalled some of his conquest expenses.

 _Which means the Saiyan Army is much larger than we thought or funds are being diverted somewhere through this account. But why call it the Saiyan Army? Why call_ _ **us**_ _the Saiyan Army? There are only five of us. Seph thinks Frieza is just being cruel but is it really so simple? Frieza has a multitude of ways to be cruel including torture. Does he really need words too?_

It made no sense. Plans for the Saiyans, Lart had said. What exactly was Frieza trying to do? She was no good at these kinds of things, reading someone's motives through their actions or reading their faces. Rikku was. She'd done all she could here.

Naya stood up when she felt Jepu's ki coming close accompanied by another one she had not run into before. She walked out of the Records room and found the window Rikku had smashed earlier and jumped through, landing next to Kin and Hiyori.

The two looked up from their game of Red Hands while Seph lay against the ground fast asleep beside them. They stopped playing and stood up watching the direction from which Jepu was coming. He soon popped into view, flying quickly toward them while a smaller figure flew beside him.

"You think that's Shinpa?" Kin asked.

Hiyori said nothing in response to that.

"No," Naya said. "That's not Shinpa's ki. If it is, something very drastic has happened to him, which I doubt."

Within seconds both flyer's landed a few feet away from them. Walking quickly, Jepu crossed the distance while the small boy who had been flying next to him trotted over warily.

"What's up?" Naya asked Jepu. "Hope nothing's gone wrong."

"If something has gone wrong then I don't know about it," Jepu said curtly. He gestured behind him at the boy clad in what she realised was a Namekian gi similar to theirs. His belt was red and he had a white collar attached to it.

"That," Jepu said, "is an Earthling. He's here to gather the Dragon Balls to revive his dead friends including his mentor."

Naya raised an eyebrow. "Earthling?"

"People from Earth," Jepu clarified. "It's some planet somewhere. What's important is the story he has to tell. Go on tell her what you told us."

The boy seemed to tense, gritting his teeth. "I don't trust Saiyans."

Naya frowned. She was distinctly sure she'd never been to Earth or killed anyone from there that she could remember. Behind her, Kin and Hiyori stared at the boy with mild interest.

Perhaps a bit of a fresh start then…

"Ok my name is Naya," she began. "I was recently in the Frieza Force serving under Prince Vegeta in the Saiyan Army. Our squad consisted of Raditz, who is unfortunately deceased, Nappa who is possibly deceased, Rikku, my partner who is not here at the moment, myself and of course, Vegeta."

She noticed him sink into a fighting stance and growl. "You're all murderers!"

Jepu frowned at this. "I didn't know you knew them. I thought that was a different group of Saiyans."

She held up her hands. "Whoa! Whoa! I think we're getting off on the wrong foot here."

"Nappa and Raditz killed my friends! Your Prince Vegeta tried to kill us all and destroy the planet."

"He does tend to do that when he loses his temper…"

The boy flew at her and she dodged easily, catching him mid-flight. "Alrighty. Take it down a notch short stuff. I didn't finish talking."

She let him go and he stumbled back in disbelief.

"As you may have just realised," Naya began. "The Saiyan Army doesn't actually exist anymore. First of all Raditz went off on some mysterious mission and never came back. He was put down as M.I.A."

"What does that mean?" he asked.

"Missing in action. In any case, my partner and I were sent on what was yet another suicide mission and our pods were sabotaged so we could never make it back. Just before this Nappa and Vegeta went on a mission they were telling no one about including us and we've never heard of them since."

He nodded along. "That must be when we killed Nappa and Raditz. They came to Earth for Dragon Balls."

It was Naya's turn to look confused. "Dragon Balls on Earth?"

She turned to Jepu. "I thought you said they were a Namek thing."

Jepu shrugged.

And so the boy explained how Raditz had shown up to recruit his father one day on Earth and how his father sacrificed his life to kill him. How Vegeta had heard of the Dragon Balls as a result of that conflict and came to Earth to get them for himself and wish for immortality with Nappa. They'd killed Nappa and his father only barely managed to beat Vegeta, they nearly killed him too but his father called for mercy and let him go.

 _Dumbass!_ The voice of Rikku ingrained in her head burst out.

She was clearly getting way too used to that boy…

"But I was too weak at the time and I let Piccolo die," the boy said, sadness showing in every word. "I was too much of a coward and so he sacrificed himself for me."

"From what I can gather," Jepu said. "This Piccolo was a Namek and split off from the one who actually made the Dragon Balls. So when he died his other half died and the Dragon Balls stopped working, which is why the Earthlings came here."

Naya nodded thoughtfully. "I see."

She stared upwards for a while before saying, "Well we're here because we're trying to find out who sent us on the suicide mission and why. If Vegeta knew about it and he's alive, he has a lot to answer for. Frieza is an added bonus currently being considered. The two behind me are Kin and Hiyori."

Naya stepped aside and waved them forward.

"Hi," Kin waved.

Hiyori just smiled lightly, still not willing to talk.

"We're Saiyans too but we're not from the Frieza Force," Kin explained. "I can tell you all about how we met-"

"But not now because we're short on time," Naya reminded him.

"Right," Kin nodded. "Frieza could show up at any moment."

Gohan looked confused.

"We're trying to kill him," Jepu explained.

"I understand what you're trying to do," Gohan said. "I still can't trust you. All Saiyans I've ever met have been evil, and conflict loving. You hurt things without a care in the world."

Naya nodded. "I understand you. We're a warrior race and you've ran only into the worst side of us from day one, but I assure you we _can_ do good things."

 _Hiding under the table._

" _Come on now little girl! I'm sure you can amuse me just a bit more."_

 _Laughter and sniggers._

" _Sir she's only eight." Mocking, as if disbelieving. The hint of a snigger behind the protest._

" _Meh, she'll do for starters."_

 _More raucous laughter. And then hidden as she was she saw the door come crashing down and two small feet standing in the door frame._

" _Where is she? I'm not satisfied with our match."_

 _"Leave kid. You're not wanted here. Get lost before we kill you."_

 _And the small feet whirled as their owner exploded into action…_

"Hey are you ok?"

Naya blinked. "What?"

"You spaced out for a second," Kin said.

Everyone was eyeing her warily except for Seph, who was still asleep. She shook her head.

"My bad," she said, looking at Gohan. "Anyway, I promise that you'll find Saiyans aren't necessarily good or bad."

Gohan looked confused by that.

"We're just people like everyone else," she finished with a genuine smile. "Give us a chance."

For several seconds, he seemed torn. He clearly had good reason to despise her, she knew. She had seen the pure rage on his face as he had jumped at her and only experience had made sure she didn't flinch or do something stupid.

Eventually, the boy nodded and relaxed. "I'll trust you, for now."

Naya grinned. "Cool! So can I get a name?"

"My name is Gohan," he said, clearly not quite comfortable.

"I'm Naya, welcome to the fold," she said holding out a hand. Gohan shook it and Jepu finally cut in rolling his eyes.

"Now that we've finished with that," the Captain said. "Let's get to business. According to this boy, all he wants to do is use the Dragon Balls to resurrect his friends and avoid Vegeta. Best case scenario kill him as well as Frieza."

"Well we've got killing Frieza handled and already planned out," Kin said gesturing to himself and Hiyori.

"Vegeta is still a pending decision," Naya said. "It all depends on…"

She paused, realizing at that moment that she had no idea what exactly they were going to _do_ when they met up with Vegeta. If he had left them for dead, would they exact revenge? Technically he hadn't actually _done_ anything to them. Still it would be good to know if he could be trusted or not.

Everyone was waiting expectantly.

"I don't know yet," she finished lamely.

"Well it's not easy to go after your own leader," Kin said. "No one's holding it against you."

"Yes it is," Naya said. "All you need is a reason. Right now, I'm not even sure I have one aside from wanting to know if he even cares what happens to us. He's always been a selfish guy."

"Ah, ok," Kin said, frowning a little as he tried to wrap his head around what she'd just said.

The dynamics of the Saiyan Army's relationships could be a tad difficult to comprehend. She was half tempted to try to explain but then decided that would only confuse him more.

"In any case," Naya said. "The main point is that we'll help you as best we can mainly because we have nothing against you and we have the time to spare. No betraying. Pinky swear."

Gohan and Kin laughed, Hiyori smiled and Jepu did Jepu things with his face. Everyone sat down in the grass.

"You're not going back inside?" Kin said, resuming his game of Red Hands with Hiyori. "You found what you were looking for?"

Naya nodded, lying down in the grass. "Yeah I did, and frankly I need Rikku here so we can brainstorm and make sense of it. "

"Seph's here."

"He's not Saiyan, but good try."

"Ah true…"

Jepu was talking to Gohan, trying to fill him in on all that they'd done and Gohan was doing the same for events leading to his arrival on Namek. Naya was listening, faintly amused when she heard how arrogant Raditz sounded in the story. When she heard how Gohan's father went toe to toe with Vegeta and was winning she was amazed. Very few people could do so much damage to Vegeta without a power gap advantage. If what she heard was true, this guy was a match for the Prince from the bottom up. Clearly if _he_ had been the one with Vegeta's strength instead of the other way round it would have been a short match. Even combined neither she nor Rikku had been able to _touch_ Vegeta- now would be a different story of course, but then _they_ were the ones with a higher power level this time around- and here this one man managed to make him transform even.

At that moment, Naya was imbued with a healthy respect for this Goku person. The slap of hands punctuated the conversation, as Kin would catch Hiyori or vice versa.

"Isn't it odd though?" Kin said finally.

Everyone stared at him. Hiyori paused mid-slap.

"You'd think Frieza would be here by now," Kin said slowly. "He's been away from his ship for a day now, if not more considering the time we attacked it. Last we checked this was his only way off as well as his only place of abode."

"He might be scared," Naya offered.

"Or he might have a plan," Hiyori said quietly.

It was the first time she'd spoken in a while and naturally it attracted attention. It was also an extremely valid point that could not be denied. Frieza was aware of their presence even if he didn't know specific details. The fact that he was staying away so long most likely meant he had a plan for a counter of some sort. In all her time in the Force, even when his armies were completely outmatched Naya had never seen Frieza do more than grin. He had _never_ run way before.

It was at this point Naya felt ki comparable to her own blossoming somewhere on the horizon. Gohan stiffened, Jepu tensed, Kin froze and Hiyori stared into the sky.

"He's here," Naya said. "Well you got your wish right on the dot. This is where I leave."

She got up and kicked Seph in the side. "Wake up. We're leaving."

Seph mumbled, rubbing his eyes as he sat up. "What's happening?"

"I will leave you behind."

"Alright, alright I'm getting up."

Naya turned back to Kin as Gohan and Jepu joined her.

"Good luck," she said. "Fight hard and don't take no for an answer."

Kin and Hiyori nodded as Seph came up close.

"I said I was staying to help them out," Seph reminded her.

"Now's your chance then," Naya said. "Bye."

"Actually no," Kin interrupted.

Seph looked surprised. "What now?"

"We appreciate all the help you've given us so far but we'll do this ourselves," Kin said. "Sorry Seph, we're grateful but you go on ahead."

Seph shook his head, but turned to Jepu who grabbed him tightly around the arm.

"I hope you know what you're doing," he said.

Kin didn't answer him.

With that, Naya and her company shot off the ground and away from the ship. As they flew, Gohan looked worried.

"Will they be ok?" he asked. "Frieza's energy is huge. It's abnormal."

"So is ours," Naya said, the wind whipping through her Namekian gi and making it billow. "But now that we're flying, how about you take us to your cave Gohan? We'll wait there for your friend Krillin. If all goes well, Kin and Hiyori and finally Rikku, will join us soon enough."

To his credit he only hesitated for five whole seconds. Gohan nodded and took the lead, curving slowly to the south west.

 _ **Kin**_

After so long… finally he got the chance to face the cause of his torment. To get revenge for their parents against the one they always spoke off with fear when they thought they couldn't hear…

Adrenaline pumped through Kin's body, preparing him for action. His skin tingled, and his legs were trembling from the sheer intensity of the high. He glanced at Hiyori and saw her going through much the same. It was finally time.

A purple speck appeared in the distance and quickly enlarged as it drew closer until finally, Frieza floated before him in some kind of hovering child seat.

"I admit this was not what I was expecting," the surprisingly diminutive tyrant said.

 _This is what my parents were scared of?_ Kin thought. _He's not much. Then again, at the time our parents weren't much in terms of power. We've only come this far thanks to Naya, Rikku and Seph._

"Looking for your wayward soldiers then?" Kin said, slowly sinking into his fighting stance.

Very basic, but when it came to raw combat all you ever needed were the basics.

Hiyori settled into her much looser open palmed one, ready to rotate into attack or defence from absolutely any angle.

At this Frieza smirked. "Wayward soldiers. An accurate description."

He floated out of the scooter and landed on the ground lightly with both hands folded behind his back.

"I wish I had a scouter with which to judge your power level," Frieza said. "To stand so confidently before me means you are either very foolish or have strength impressive enough to lead you to believe you can best me."

Frieza smile turned dark. "The last person to challenge me directly like this was blown up along with his home planet. Funnily enough, he was Saiyan too…"

"If you could sense our power levels," Kin said. "You'd save the talking and start running."

Without giving Frieza the chance to respond Kin rushed him and threw out a solid kick to his jaw that knocked him flying back. Hiyori shot behind him, whirled her arms to build up momentum, and kicked him in the back straight up. Kin flew up above and sent him crashing into the Earth with a single solid punch.

This was it! This was the chance for revenge that he'd been waiting for!

" _Kin, I'm going to be honest with you… your sister Hiyori… I need you to protect her. Give her whatever she needs. I don't know if I'll make it back…"_

" _Dad…"_

" _She's sharp but she's a fragile soul deep down… Kin promise me…"_

Kin charged forward, rage guiding him. "You took them away!"

Frieza heaved himself up just as Kin slammed into him with a punch that had his entire body weight behind it. The small tyrant zoomed backward, unable to hide his shock and pain. Hiyori flew above, keeping pace and jabbing through his armour until the entire thing was covered in cracks. Frieza tried to stop her but her final palm strike smashed the entire thing to bits and drove him into the Earth a second time.

Kin was already waiting for him, booting him to his feet and driving several punches into his body that Frieza tried and failed to block. So fast were they, so heavy were they that Frieza could barely muster a defence and the instant he did it was smashed through like tissue. Kin finished with a front kick that smashed the tyrant through the side of his own spaceship.

"Haaaaaa!"

Ki built up in both his hands. Frieza stumbled back through the hole and saw Kin glowing, his white aura rippling like some kind of flaming muscle. His eyes widened.

"Mizochi!"

Kin stomped forward and fired a massive ki wave that dwarfed everyone in the fight. It hit Frieza's space ship and blew up violently. The ground shook as the shockwaves from the impact rolled through it. The air roiled as it was disrupted over and over again. The blast zone churned with smoke and dust and in all of that Frieza was nowhere to be seen.

" _You wanted to talk to me Rikku?"_

" _Yeah… listen, Kin. When you go up against Frieza, assume the worst at all times. Don't let up. Don't try anything fancy. Just kill him and be done with it."_

" _Huh?"_

" _Humour me. I'm not just talking about the Frieza Force, I'm talking about the entire Cold Army of which the Frieza Force is just a section. This advice is so you come out alive. We have some of the universe's strongest, most lethal, most dangerous people as soldiers. Every single one of them fears Frieza. That fear is there for a reason. Don't give him a chance to fight back at all. If the fear is anything to judge by, it'll take more than equal power levels to kill him."_

"… _I hear you."_

The dust was cleared all at once and Frieza charged out, furious. "You trash!"

Kin put up his defence and weathered the barrage of fists, giving ground at an extreme rate. Hiyori saved him with a flying kick that knocked Frieza aside and went after Frieza. The two of them exchanged blows while Kin circled around to get a clear shot. Just when Kin was about to hit him Frieza turned, grabbed him by the arm and threw him into one of Hiyori's palm strikes she had been about to use to knock him into Kin's blow. Kin went flying and Frieza continued the spin, whipping Hiyori off her feet with his tail and kicking her into the air where he sent a laser from his finger after her. Hiyori twisted aside and zoomed back down while Kin charged forward once again. Frieza leaped off to the side and Hiyori followed him mid-flight, sending kicks raining down on the tyrant. While he was distracted Kin slid in, knocking Frieza off his feet and, as the tyrant flipped over, Kin fired yet another ki wave from beneath him.

Frieza shot skywards with Hiyori close after him. The second he recovered and stopped she cleaved into him with a heavy strike! He curled around her palm, eyes wide in pain and disbelief. He'd never seen it coming.

And finally Kin stopped charging up the yellow ball that sat high above his head, supported by both arms. It was huge, the size of a three story building and a bright shade of yellow that illuminated the entire scene in swathes of gold. He watched Hiyori get out of the way, flew up above Frieza in an instant and threw it down on him.

"Inochitori Hoshidan!" (Fatal Star Bullet)

For the first time since the fight started, Frieza screamed as the attack collided with him, pushed him down to earth and began to grind him into the dirt. He tried to resist it, pushing back against it, but Kin would not be denied. He pushed the ball down with even greater reserves of energy, forcing his ki behind the attack in an effort to overwhelm Frieza. It was a stalemate…

The two struggled with each other. The ground shook for miles; the air whirled around the two conflicting energies. Rock began to rise around Frieza and the ball trembled.

Kin growled in irritation. _SO close! Not now! He's finally going to pay!_

The ball inched toward Frieza. Yes! He was winning! Slowly but surely!

Hiyori flew up next to him and the bolstered the attack with her own ki. Like the slow inexorable closing of a tomb, the hand of death reaching out with certainty, the ball finally came down on Frieza. The tyrant's death scream was drowned out by the grinding of rock and the loud hurricane of noise, sound and air the ball emitted as it crushed him and then promptly exploded. Waves of force rolled over Kin and he raised a hand to resist being blown away from the after-shock of his own attack.

When the explosion finally burned itself out, Kin lowered his hand and stared into the crater his attack had made. It was issuing bilious amounts of smoke and dust that made it impossible for him to see what had happened. That technique was his strongest one, nothing he had compared to it. Equal power level or no there was no way Frieza survived that. Next to him, Hiyori seemed to be expecting something. Smoke cleared from the crater and revealed, Frieza standing with one hand raised and a frown on his face.

Kin stared. "No way…"

"You will pay for that dearly," Frieza said slowly. "I assure you."

"Kin," Hiyori said. "We can't beat him."

She said it so matter-of-factly. Like it didn't matter they had come this far, dedicated years of training and research to face this… _thing_ only to realize they weren't even worth the effort. That it was a failure.

"I don't know what research you did or where you came from or how you even got this strong," Frieza said slowly, rising into the air. Without his armour on, Kin could see his chest. It was small covered in white armour-like skin with a purple soft spot where his solar plexus was. The skin was called bio-armour. Kin vaguely mentioned his parents mentioning it when studying certain alien races.

"You say that like you don't care Hiyori," Kin growled. "I refuse to accept this!"

"But rest assured, for the humiliation you have dealt me today your death will be slow," Frieza promised.

And with that he clenched his fists as his power shot up violently, nearly overwhelming Kin's senses with the initial instantaneous increase. A dark pink aura flared around the galactic tyrant, churning the air and making the earth quake.

"I'm more concerned with you being alive," Hiyori said. "Revenge is meaningless if we're dead. Rikku told you the same. Naya told you the same… Our parents told you the same…."

"But you…"

"Now is not the time or place," Hiyori said. "It's not even about me. I may break down now and again, and I admit, when we started this, I did want revenge. I still do."

Kin could see that her eyes were tearing up as she spoke. It pained her more than she let on.

"But even more important to me than revenge, is the well-being of my brother. Kin… let's give it up… We can always try again."

Kin stared. "Hiyori…"

He had known. Always known that she wanted revenge more than he did, needed it even…

 _She's sharp but she's fragile…_

Kin was moved but now he was here, he found that his mind simply could not let go of killing Frieza. In his soul the very idea of leaving Frieza alive for any reason, upset him on an existential level he could not put into words.

"Run then!" he snapped, regretting the words the instant he said them.

Hiyori stared in shock. Kin had _never, ever_ spoken to her like that over _anything_. He had looked out for her without complaint, been there for her from day one even when they still had parents. He was her loyal brother…

She looked hurt. She was speechless.

Kin felt a hole opening wide in his chest. A gaping hole of sadness and a whole lot of remorse.

And Frieza finished powering up.

In an instant Kin found himself in the dirt wondering how he got there, why he was facing the sky and why his entire body hurt. Frieza was grinding one foot into his chest, displeasure clear on his face. Kin gritted his teeth against the pain, not willing to give Frieza the satisfaction.

Next to him, Hiyori lay planted in the earth, out cold. It pained Kin that the last thing she would ever remember was him saying something hurtful.

Frieza held up one index finger and a small ball of purple ki formed at its tip. He shot Kin in the shoulder and Kin howled, squirming and trying to break free. All he did was dig himself deeper into the dirt. Frieza fired through his other shoulder. Pain roared through his system as his body protested, and Kin fell into a mindless sort of struggle. Anything to get away, anything to make sure he didn't feel it again. But again he felt it, through the kneecap this time He screamed till his throat was raw. Then the other kneecap.

Frieza waited for his struggles to subside and his breathing to slow down. This took several minutes.

 _No more… no more...!_

"I'm sure you trained to meet my power level of 150,000," Frieza said, his grin returning. "That is what those traitorous apes would tell you my power level is. Those filthy monkeys are mere members of the force who have never seen my true power."

"My power level is 530,000," Frieza stated coldly. "I'll carve its meaning into your very soul. First, I'll hit everything except your vitals…"

He charged up another beam. **"Then I'll burst your insides one by one."**

"We knew…"

Frieza paused. "You've got enough sense to speak. I'm clearly losing my touch."

"We knew you'd be even stronger than… Rikku didn't know… but he guessed that it would take more than we currently had…" Kin breathed, halting between words as pain racked his system.

What he just said _would not_ be the last thing Hiyori ever heard him say! He reached beneath his dogi for the pendant, nearly crying as him arm spasmed. Frieza immediately stepped on it.

"Normally I'd watch you and say resistance is futile and all that," Frieza said, frowning. "Except I'm not feeling very amused right now. I take back the torture. I'll just kill you."

Kin wheezed as Frieza pressed his arm into his chest even harder.

 _I haven't acclimatised to it yet… but this is all I've got…_

With a roar of supreme effort, Kin forced his arm the rest of the way into his dogi and managed to ever so slightly brush against his pendant. That was all it took.

Blue ki exploded around him and blasted Frieza off him with what sounded like gigatonnes of force! It lifted Kin to his feet as its sheer pressure pushed against the very ground beneath him.

And his body changed. Blue fur grew on his entire body, leaving his chest bare. His silver hair lengthened, and turned spiky the sheer energy flowing throughout his body serving to keep the locks suspended. He grew taller, his muscles increased in size and definition and lastly a blue furred tail tore its way through the dogi. He could feel his centre charged with power and with a growl he summoned all of it into his system at once!

The top half of the dogi, along with a fair bit of the environment was blasted away from him in an explosion of energy. The air was tossed violently, the ground shivered like it was being massaged by the fingers of a giant. And finally Kin relaxed, and let the energy running wild throughout his system run its course and eventually ease.

Kin glared at the astonished Frieza even as a slow haze began to cloud his thoughts. He vaguely remembered pain, vaguely remembered regret. He shook his head discomforted by the thoughts. Until he was alerted that he was in need of medical attention, by his still damaged body. He was distracted… distracted by another need.

A much more real and very pressing need, was his need to fight…

 _ **Frieza**_

He had come for Dragon Balls, now it was just one thing after another. One problem in the process of being rectified, another three popped up. Frieza muscled his way out of the hole in a nearby cliff he'd been thrown into and growled angrily. All these Saiyans, it all boiled down to the monkey filth! He had a good deal going with the powers that be and by becoming immortal he was going to double-cross them, naturally. That way he'd rule over everything without question. But then he'd heard about Super Saiyans, and then King Vegeta and his idiot compatriots had started getting bloated ideas too big for their heads. And now this….

Frieza glared across the decimated earth at the boy he'd been torturing only so recently and wiped the blood off his lower lip.

" _You_ wound _me_?!" he spat. "Scum! I've been far too merciful! I will kill you! All of you!"

Even though he could not sense energy, Frieza knew power when he saw it. The way the environment was reacting to his enemy…

The boy stood covered in pale blue fur but for his chest, a pale blue tail protruded from behind, so reminiscent of the giant apes they could famously become. His muscles had bulked up, not so much that he was like a wad of boulders, but they were definitely thicker than they were before and sharply defined. The ridiculous hair looked like it was being suspended from the sheer energy the boy exuded. The tip that told Frieza how strong the boy was currently was the bio shock, the arcs of visible energy streaking like lightning across his body every so often. Ki so dense and so powerful it was reacting with the elements around it… the boy was not to be sneezed at right now. Even his most powerful state could only achieve the same effect with his strongest, most energy consuming attacks, and here this boy was achieving the same… _casually!_ Just by standing there!

That was the bit that irritated Frieza the most. The bit that made him absolutely livid! How dare they try to reach him! How dare they try to exceed him! How dare they try to steal _his_ empire! The filth! They all deserved to die! Stupid monkeys the lot of them! Apes!

Sheer rage summoned up a storm as his energy reacted to his emotions, and Frieza didn't stop there. Oh no. As his power level rose and rose, he re-modified his body to meet it. He'd designed this form so that it could only ever use a set percentage of his full power at any time. It was all too easy to turn things back the way they were. And so his power shot up, and his body evolved to welcome it. His aura shook the earth, and boiled the air. For this part of Namek, the world trembled.

And then Frieza felt the last of his full strength surge as his body achieved its original state. The aura cleared in a blast of force that further destroyed the already wrecked environment, leaving Frieza standing much taller than before with a pure white body. The top of his head was purple still, but there were no horns like before. Two lines led from his eyes to the sides of his chin, he knew. He knew every inch of this form. His true form.

Frieza didn't bother starting small. He was going to destroy the monkeys, once and for all. He instinctively smacked the ground with his tail, as if to emphasize the thought and his power level rose even further until he was at 90% of his full strength. All of it was just too stressful but he would do it if necessary.

Frieza leaned forward and clenched both fists at his sides. Opposite him, the boy sank into the fighting stance from before without so much as a wince from his prior wounds. The eyes were like bleached silver, somehow there and somehow not. It was hard to tell if his opponent was even paying attention at all. The thought annoyed Frieza further.

Then the two clashed.

 _ **Rikku**_

We felt it before we saw it. A massive power that dwarfed Frieza's by such a ridiculous degree it wasn't even worth trying to estimate it. Zithis sped up, dragging me along through the air. It oozed over the horizon with a palpable pressure that made it hard for me even to move. The part of me that liked to be accurate couldn't resist pointing out, _Whatever that is it's going to kill you…_

Once we got close enough, I was positively stunned. There was some kind of ape man… I shook my head looking more closely… no it was Kin! He was trading blows with Frieza on the ground just in front of the lizards space ship. The thing was completely totalled. And Frieza… he looked different, taller, white and with a smoother looking body. But I could sense his power, and I knew right then that these were two titans I could never hope to compete with.

Zithis kept me up in the air, surveying the battle for himself. We were far enough that we wouldn't get caught up in it unless one of the fighters did something drastic. I couldn't believe my eyes… Kin was like some kind of human Oozaro with pale blue fur and silver hair… Frieza was knocked flying backward but recovered enough to stop a punch, and retaliate with a tail strike to the face. Kin caught Frieza's tail one handed and proceeded to slam him into the ground repeatedly.

Even from here I could practically feel Frieza's outrage, the air was so saturated with his ki it was impossible to miss. He fired a purple ki wave so huge it swallowed Kin up and pulled the some of the ground up along with it. Kin maintained his grip and from within the blast, pulled Frieza in and punched him, immediately cutting off the attack. Frieza looked dazed from that one hit. Kin didn't seem to be moving, but suddenly Frieza's body was rocking violently as if caught in a rush of blows. He was jerking so fast I could see _afterimages!_ And Kin's expression… he had a savage smile on his face.

At that moment I knew…

 _That's not Kin… not really… That form is somehow influencing his mind. Like the actual Oozaro form does. This current brutality he possesses is from his Saiyan blood!_

It briefly occurred to me that I was being rash in my conclusion, but I quickly dismissed it. All that aggression had to be coming from _somewhere_.

Zithis powered up in preparation to interrupt the fight and assist Frieza. In that instant he released his power, there was suddenly a rush of air filling in an empty spot beside me. When I felt the cuffs Zithis placed on me disappear, I didn't need to turn around to know. We had been floating right in front of a cliff about a kilometre away with a clear view of the fight taking place. Behind me, Zithis would be in a smoking crater on the cliff face, unconscious, and Kin would be focusing his attention on me.

I turned. Kin was behind me, snarling like some kind of wild animal. I froze on instinct. Something screamed at me that if I moved I was toast. The golden tasty kind. Kin's tail twitched. I didn't move. And his _eyes_ , they had become unbearably pale but that just made his aggression all the clearer. Zithis came unstuck from the hole in the crater and fell toward the ground. Kin kept glaring at me.

It was at times like this my mind tended to roam.

 _What was the point,_ it wondered, _of training so hard and learning all those techniques if they meant nothing when it really mattered? In the face of such overwhelming power what could someone possibly do?_

I was more experienced. I had more techniques, more training, more skills. People liked to say power isn't everything. They liked to say how with the right skills you could take down anyone no matter who they were like it was some golden rule. I'd been skinny and extensive training over the years had brought me up to lean and strong and even then I was still weak. Compared to fighters with better genes than me, I was much weaker. It made wrestling so much harder for me. Part of the reason I'd grown so skilled was because I was weak. I could not afford to make mistakes. I could not afford _not_ to deal maximum damage with every blow. But what was the point in using a technique that allowed you to fire ten punches in a combo if your opponent was so much faster than you he could achieve the same effect with ten separate punches?

I could trick him, I could take advantage of any mistakes he made. I had better offense and better defence. All things being equal, I would own him easily. But what use was it, really, in springing a trap on someone so much stronger than you he could come out of it completely unscathed and so much faster than you he could figure it out, get out and blast a hole in you before you could even _think_ about closing in for the kill? Gifted with that same power, I'd be much more dangerous than him for sure. I was making maximum, efficient use of the little I had. I didn't even need to be _as powerful as_ him, only powerful enough - but I was nowhere near that. The gap was much too wide.

But what did that mean here and now, with my life on the line? With that much power, Kin didn't need to be better than me, he just needed to be good enough. I had trained with him in the few months leading up till now and I knew without a doubt, he was more than good enough. Power was a huge advantage. It was the foundation upon which your entire fighting style and martial capabilities were based. Skills were made to take advantage of power, and the mind was what developed the skills, guided in turn by experience. But power was the foundation, without it the other two were useless. The problem was plain and simple: For all my skill, techniques, knowledge and experience… I was not strong enough. Period.

Kin reached for me, his girlish face suddenly so very threatening.

Never in my life had I imagined that I would be pleased to see Frieza. The lizard charged right in and knocked Kin flying. He followed up with several concentrated shots from one finger that Kin easily dodged and then blurred. The cliff vibrated and crumbled as a shockwave rolled out from the knee Kin had buried in Frieza's gut. Frieza curled around the blow, eyes wide. When I saw his pupils glaze over for a minute I knew he couldn't take much more.

 _One more hit will do it,_ I observed. _It doesn't even need to be clean._

But what was odd was that with the power gap I was sensing, Kin should have completely annihilated all of us already. He could deal with us the way he dealt with flies. The question was: Why not?

I expanded my senses, sight, smell, touch and even energy… scanning the environment. I saw Hiyori, energy faint… knocked out…

 _The trigger…_

I noticed Frieza, crawling on the ground choking in pain. He had power to spare but he was clearly in no condition to use it… wouldn't make a difference anyway…

 _The one who squeezed it…_

And I noticed Kin advancing on Frieza, all my senses focused on his every move. _The weapon…_

But more importantly…

 _Was he hobbling?_

In disbelief I watched Kin mid stride as he moved to kick Frieza. There! No doubt about it! His leg quivered unnaturally for a moment. And suddenly, like staring at a picture for hours until you realised the pattern was right in front of you I saw them. The holes in his joints, hidden beneath the fur that covered him now! Frieza's handiwork no doubt. He couldn't move properly because of those injuries and because of that he couldn't bring his full power to bear! Not without collapsing his body. It seemed even in that state there was intelligence. An acute fighting sense. I was willing to bet that on some level, Kin _knew_ this.

 _Not that he needs all of it,_ I thought wryly. _No need to call down nuclear strikes to kill worms after all…_

I nearly grinned. There was hope! If not for those injuries, all of us would have been grease stains in the blue grass of Namek. I looked over at Hiyori. Judging from Kin's reaction to me earlier I knew he couldn't differentiate between friend and foe. That meant I needed to get Hiyori somewhere safe and quickly, possibly subdue her wayward brother and then get away before Frieza or Zithis recovered enough to do anything about it.

Since he knocked Zithis out I had made sure not to move. It was the movement and activation of ki that had attracted Kin's attention. Before Zithis had moved Kin had paid us absolutely zero attention.

 _Like a predator… the key is movement…_

Kin was telling Frieza to get up and fight. And his _voice_ …

His voice was usually light and curious, but here it had a dark intonation underneath that implied his aggressive mindset. He spoke slowly and with an overwhelming intensity, backed with certainty in his own strength. It was like… it was like… listening to liquid power wrapped in dark, smouldering lava. There was no way to describe it…

 _Stop admiring how dangerous he is and get to work you moron…_

"Good job Kin!" I called out. "Now we can run away!"

He glared at me and I could swear I saw the fires of hell. I pretended not to notice and placed an idiot grin on my face… and waved.

In an instant Kin pinned me to the cliff by the throat.

 _He really can't differentiate…_

I had grabbed his arm in both hands, choking. _Please don't squeeze…_

But my talking like we were friends had made him curious.

He spoke again. "You… I remember you…"

 _It's not that he can't differentiate,_ I realised. _It's that all he cares about is fighting!_

"Yaaargh."

My sarcastic side could not resist. _Remind you of someone…?_

He grinned. "You're good in a fight. I want to fight you."

"Yaargh."

"Go on. Escape my grip. Surely you've got something up your sleeve?" he looked expectant, like it would make his day if I broke free.

My vision was dimming, my brain was starting to buzz due to no circulation. I was losing consciousness. I raised one hand toward his face. Ordinarily this was the part where I'd punch him in the eye. No matter how strong you were you couldn't build muscles on your eyes, but of course he had ki reinforcing his body several times beyond anything I could do. He didn't need muscles in his eyes. I could _scratch_ those pale orbs and he wouldn't feel a thing much less take damage. He watched my hand in some sort of morbid fascination expecting something, anything. He was disappointed.

Halfway to his eyes, my hand spasmed, diverted course, quivered and then fell as the last of my consciousness began to fade. Then blood rushed in as the grip on my neck released! Air! Blessed air! I wobbled in mid-air, recovering. I was free! Dull pain blossomed in my throat.

Kin was screaming, howling, rolling around in the air. My hand had hit the open wound in his shoulder when it fell. I had been aiming for that from the start, I knew I'd never be able to actually hurt him but it was child's play to aggravate wounds that were already there. The trick was doing it so he wouldn't know I was attacking him. For a moment, I was torn between doing it again till he blacked out or just running away with Hiyori.

I chose Hiyori. With a quick Genpo, I was next to her picking her up in my arms. I was about to run away when I saw Zithis appear in front of me.

"You won't get away," he said flatly.

For someone who got hit by Kin he looked remarkably fine. It occurred to me that Zithis could have faked getting knocked out for Frieza's benefit…

I stared. _Just how strong is he…?_

Speaking with my partly crushed throat was difficult but I managed to rasp, "We need to run… he'll kill us all."

Zithis shook his head and pointed. I looked behind me to see Frieza flying above Kin and firing lasers through the holes in his body. He had seen Kin's reaction and had guessed why he was hurt. Now he was taking full advantage. He was making sure to spread his lasers over a wide area just in case Kin was fast enough to recover and get away. He wouldn't, I knew. The pain was very obviously crippling all on its own. If simply brushing it with my hand was enough to make him scream, a full on laser was probably destroying his sanity. Kin was too busy writhing to think about running or attacking.

It took several minutes torture to finally make him black out but black out he did and Frieza floated above him, wheezing with the effort. But he wasn't about to be fooled, he fired one more. Kin didn't move. Then two this time, right on target. Kin's body thumped and remained still. He was down for the count.

To everyone's surprise, the fur receded and the hair shortened and the inner glow faded until it was just plain old Kin in a ripped shirt. He really was down for the count. Frieza landed, moving to kill him now that he was vulnerable.

I gave Zithis a pleading look. It went against my pride and everything that I believed. You had to fend for yourself. You did idiotic things, idiotic things happened to you. Going berserk like that against Frieza was stupid, beyond stupid. IF you can't beat him you run, regroup and sharpen your weapons with more knowledge on how your enemy worked. You don't go all or nothing. Even if I hadn't been here I could tell that was what Kin had done… all or nothing. It was moronic but everyone deserved a chance. Perhaps he didn't know. People could miss things, even obvious things. People could make mistakes.

 _Just this once…_

"Lord Frieza," Zithis said.

Frieza paused. "What is it, Zithis? I need to annihilate this filth quickly, before he gets a chance to do anything else."

"They have information that I need," Zithis said. "All of them. It will help in tracking down Vegeta and the missing Dragon Balls as well as the last of the Saiyan rebels."

Frieza didn't even consider it. "It is not worth facing the power he wields again."

"With respect Lord Frieza, didn't anything look familiar about that form?"

I blinked in surprise. They knew Kin had a monster form like that? They'd come across that form before?!

Frieza stared. "I see. So it's _their_ children is it?"

He shot Kin's pendant, obliterating it. He looked at Hiyori in my grasp and blasted hers too.

Frieza walked past us, shrinking back to his first and smallest form. "Take them away."

Zithis used his ki to lift Kin's body and floated it over.

"I trust you will not run," Zithis said to me.

"No."

I owed him after all. There was no turning back now.

Minutes later I was shoved in a medical station to heal alongside Kin and Hiyori. Zithis stood guard over us personally. There was nobody else to do it.

The ship was wrecked. The medical bay now looked out into a devastated wasteland through a massive jagged hole. Frieza would definitely not be able to leave this planet with this ship.

Zithis suddenly started talking.

Through the bubbling of whatever the liquid in the tank was I could barely hear him. It was all muffled and distorted.

 _What did you say?_ I thought.

He realised the problem and switched to telepathy. _I said Zarbon is back and he's in trouble. It seems he found Vegeta and killed him, or at least he left him for dead._

I glared at him.

 _Frieza has sent him to retrieve the body and pray to whatever god he worships that the Prince is not dead._

I couldn't contain my surprise. _Why?_

 _He hid one of the Dragon Balls._ _If he dies we may never find it._

I knew in that moment that the one I had sensed attacking the Namekian village was Vegeta obtaining a Dragon ball for himself. At least now I knew for sure that he wouldn't be dying any time soon because he had value to Frieza. Assured of Vegeta's safety, I considered the problem of Zithis loyalty…

… _.You have a question,_ Zithis said.

 _Yes. Why did you help me out?_

He paused _. I'll be taking all of you out of there in half an hour's time._

 _Time in which I have nothing to do but nag you._

 _Don't overestimate your usefulness to me._

I sighed mentally. _Sure sure…_

True to his word, in half an hour's time, fully recovered or no Zithis transferred us to the ship's frequently used torture chamber because Frieza liked these things. We were chained to the walls with Zithis' ki constructs and left to hang there. We wouldn't be escaping on our own unless we could somehow exert more power against the chains than Zithis had put in them. I gave a tug.

 _Yup, we're gonna be here a while._

* * *

 **I'm not gonna put any power levels here because they would just be intermediary really. Also yes, it was Super Saiyan 4. I know most people like to use the multiplier factor of 500 because it's basically like a Super Saiyan Great Ape kind of thing. I intend to play with that a bit hint: SSJ2 is twice as powerful as SSJ1, SSJ3 is 4 times more powerful than SSJ2... see the trend? Good.**

 **For reference in this particular chapter Kin's power was multiplied by... you know what no. You'll find out soon enough.**

 **Btw did anyone see that interview with Toriyama about Yamoshi? I think it's pretty cool. It's actually what I was intending to do with this story. Not ditto ditto but the general theme was the same. Don't worry, this one can stand entirely on it's own tho and still fit within the canon DB universe. No worries...**


	14. Chapter 13

**Forgive how short this one is. It's the setup for the next batch. Whew I can see why Toriyama's power level system is so inconsistent. Remebering the figures is hard... but I'll hold on. Till after the end of Namek. I can hold on. Just a bit longer now...**

* * *

 **Chapter 13**

 _ **Naya**_

Gohan made sure to introduce her to Bulma. How could he not, the woman was pushy and noisy and overall just really annoying. Needless to say, Naya instantly disliked her. Combined with worrying over why Rikku had not found her yet, she was not in the best of moods. As a result she sat outside the cave with her legs crossed and her arms folded, staring out at what she might've considered a beautiful and peaceful scene if not her current mood.

Everyone was inside, talking and otherwise getting to know each other. She could hear bits and pieces of conversation coming from within. So far the only voice she hadn't heard was Jepu, he had gone back to Shinpa soon after arriving at the cave. Seph was in there talking up a storm and worrying about how Kin and Hiyori were doing like they were his kids or something.

Naya sighed. She would be more relaxed if she knew what Rikku was doing. How he was doing… He wasn't what he used to be. He made her worry. He made her worry about a lot of things. She was worried he would sink back into his old ways. She was worried he would simply fall apart one day and never realize. She worried that one day in ignoring his limitations he would go too far and hurt himself irreparably. She worried that one day he would stop struggling to improve himself. She worried that one day he would actually accept this new weakness as part of him. Accept that he would never be as great as he once was and give up. Oh how she worried.

 _He was staring at his hands like they belonged to a stranger._

" _What's wrong?" she asked._

 _He just kept staring._

" _Rikku what's wrong?"_

" _I… don't know…"_

The confusion. It was something else when the very body you relied on could no longer do the things you wanted it to. It must be so frustrating to run knowing that you could run faster and yet never be able to do so. To lift weight, knowing that you could lift heavier and yet failing time and again. To think knowing that you could easily figure out a solution and yet finding yourself drawing a blank. To once have been and to no longer be… and in your heart and mind never noticing the change, until one day you call on the skills, you call on the gifts you thought you possessed only to find they were no longer there. She could only imagine the frustration.

It was supposed to be a matter of simple reconditioning. Part of the reason he'd gotten that way was because he busied himself with her, making sure she was alright. Making sure no one ever did… making sure no one ever did what _they_ did to her ever again. Simple re-training should have been enough. But he never improved. He never got better. Now it was sporadic, on and off. There a moment, gone the next. Sometimes you would see it for a minute, the old glory shining through. And then… gone. Just like that. And no one was more upset about it than Rikku. If you couldn't trust your own body and mind to do their jobs what could you trust? He was stumbling in the worst way. All because he decided one day to help someone who couldn't help themselves for the first time in his life.

 _It's so unfair!_

What even determined how well you could do something anyway? Talent? Luck? Skill? Experience? Mindset? Upbringing? WHAT! Why does one person do something better than another person? Aren't they both people in the end? And come to think of it, why did anyone have to be better at anything compared to everyone else?

 _And then what would the alternative be?_ Her thoughts reminded her, almost mocking. _A world where everyone is a carbon copy of each other? A world that simply_ _ **is?**_ _A world like that is worth cardboard._

Cardboard would at least be fair, but she knew, even as she considered this, that it was the anger talking. A hot fury flooded her body and she knew that she couldn't stay. She needed to burn some of it away. She needed to hit things. Burn things. Explode things. She was worried and she was angry that all she could do was worry.

 _One day_ , her thoughts always reminded her _. One day, he's going to be in a situation he's going to need those skills to come out of._

 _Because you of all people know…,_ they always nagged. _People aren't always evil because they don't know better. You know that people aren't always saints driven to the edge. You know that the majority are evil because they can be and sometimes choose to be. And you know that evil people don't always know that they're evil… that they accept evil… not because they say yes but because_ _ **they don't say no**_ _…_

 _A great rolling sea of sin with the odd genuinely good soul lost and drowning within it with every passing day, until even they couldn't save themselves… didn't even realize they needed saving…_

She gritted her teeth in fury. _Painful… so painful…_

Her chest tightened. It was like watching a dear friend come to your rescue only to fall victim to the sharks and be ripped apart before your eyes after saving you. Except it wasn't quite so blessed as a quick death. It was a slow consumption of the mind, a bowing of the soul that you could see behind their eyes every single day. And with every day, it was a little worse… every day a little more beaten… a little more weary…

Movement in her peripheral vision drew her attention. It was Gohan stepping out of the cave with some kind of device in his hand.

"Ummm… Naya-san. Are you okay?"

He looked worried. Concerned. And what was that "san" thing anyway? He'd been saying that for a while now.

The anger made it hard to speak. "I'm… I'm alright."

Gohan looked like he didn't know what to say. It was clearly obvious to him that she was not okay. He looked very much aware of the fact that she was upset about something and for a moment Naya wondered what it was until she realized.

"You can sense ki?"

Gohan nodded the hesitated. "Uhmm… you're also… uhmmm…"

Naya stared at him.

"You're… crying…" he said finally, looking at the ground.

"Just a bit," he added hastily. Nervously.

 _No wonder. Hell…_

She suppressed a curse word, wiped her face clean and glared at the blue grass. "No, I'm not ok."

"Why aren't you ok? What's wrong?"

She didn't want to talk to him. "Weren't you doing something?"

Unfortunately, Gohan was much too young to know when he was being subtly dismissed. He took the question literally.

"Not really," he answered. "Just we found a Dragon Ball and I'm going out to get it. But I felt your energy just now and I thought maybe I could help…"

It was hard to be angry, when Gohan was so genuinely concerned. It was touching in a way. She felt the rage falling away, replaced by a feeling she was not used to. She was almost happy… even though the situation hadn't really changed. She decided just a few words would be ok.

"I don't know if you can help me," Naya said. "My problem is… complicated."

Gohan frowned in genuine confusion. "Complicated how?"

"You know how you're here looking out for your friends because they fought for you? Defended you?"

Gohan nodded earnestly. From what he said and how he related with the others she knew that it was definitely a feeling he could relate to. It was the entire reason he was _here_. The reason he left his own planet even at his young age.

"That's what I'm doing now," she said, making sure not to let the words choke her. "Words cannot describe what I… well…"

Even now… it was hard. So hard…

"The point is," she continued. "I care about this person and I'm trying to help him. But every time I try he grows distant. Reclusive even, sometimes. And sometimes he outright ignores the fact that he's struggling."

Gohan gave her a thoughtful look., his mind clearly working over what she'd just said.

"I don't really understand the difficult bits," he said honestly, his expression open and easily readable. "But it sounds like your friend doesn't want to be helped."

She sighed. He was probably right. Gohan had the straightforward mindset reinforced by naivety to reach and accept that conclusion. Denial was not a thing for him at his current age. He was open to anything and everything. If she told him the sky was pink and could back it up with enough half-truths he would believe her. This was what made his judgment so much more accurate than hers. There was no such thing as impossible in Gohan's mind. Open to everything, denying nothing.

"But if it bothers you this much why not just help him anyway?" Gohan suggested.

 _Because it's the kind of problem that means you have to let me in first,_ Naya silently rebuked him.

Outside her thoughts, she smiled and said, "Sure Gohan why not. Help him anyway. Right."

She stood up. "You know what. I'll start practicing by helping you. Let's go and get that Dragon Ball."

Gohan grinned. "Sure."

He was a nice boy really. Kind. Compassionate. Nothing at all like the one she was trying to reach out to.

"By the way Gohan, thank you…"

He laughed and rubbed his head nervously, obviously uncomfortable. Despite herself, Naya smiled. He really was such a good boy.

They took off and all the while Naya went over it in her head. Even after they retrieved the Dragon Ball, it dwelled on her mind.

 _Doesn't want to be helped huh… if only it were so simple…_

 _ **Seph**_

Seph knew a few things during his time in the cave. One female in it did not like him and the other female in it annoyed him, so he disliked her. Eventually Naya had gone to sit outside and after a few minutes of talking with Bulma, Gohan had been sent out to retrieve a Dragon Ball. Jepu sat by himself quietly.

Seph was currently debating his chances of getting a wish of his own. They wouldn't let him. It was something he knew. He simply knew from experience. It happened all the time, he was always excluded, always the one left out. Always the one lagging behind. Bored and slightly depressed, he began to rap to himself, out loud.

Music, he found, was a good way to express his feelings. The words always just came to him, and he knew exactly how he wanted to sing them. He didn't remember every song he'd ever done but he remembered many, especially those that resonated with him. And besides, any time the words didn't come to you, you could just fill in with gibberish. The point was to get it out. To put thoughts and emotion into a substance.

He sighed. Sadly his one friend in the force did not put much stock in emotion or seem to care much about his musical talents. If anything he got _even more_ cynical and even more critical about the music than he was about his fighting skills. The second he showed interest in anything Rikku would keep saying how it wasn't good enough. More than once he'd wanted to shout at him. To rage and tell him outright not to be such a prick.

But he was the only friend. Not the first time he wondered if he would put up with any of that if he had more friends. Better friends. Friends who actually _cared_. Friends who appreciated him the way he was. People he could be with and not have to pretend to be anything other than what he was, that would love the same things he did.

Music and writing with some Martial Arts thrown in maybe. That's all he wanted to do. He loved reading too, all kinds of books. He remembered things, interesting things. People, places… no matter how trivial. He liked reading and using new words, new ways to say things. Saying the same things all the time was boring. Some words just sounded good too… like salacious… herculean… arbitrary…

He made sure to mix those into his rap as he cogitated. _Cogitated… nice!_

He used that one in a line about how senseless people could be.

He kept going until he ran out of things to say, then he picked a new theme and continued rapping and singing under his breath.

About an hour in the muttering annoyed Bulma enough for her to tell him to shut up. He did, keeping the flare in his temper to himself. No one would side with him anyway. He proceeded to make up lyrics in his head.

Eventually Naya and Gohan came back, with a Dragon Ball tucked under the former's arm. She looked contemplative and somewhat sad. She passed Gohan the Dragon Ball to give to Bulma. She watched him deliver it to the blue haired woman and explain how they found it without any hitches. Seph had to admit, she didn't look well.

He stood up with some difficulty and shuffled over to her.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked.

He did not expect the glare that came his way. He almost staggered backwards. She held the glare for several seconds and then wordlessly, she turned and walked outside the cave.

 _What was that for?_ Seph thought in righteous indignation.

He was going to follow her when Gohan's voice rang out. "Krillin's back!"

Everyone rushed outside to welcome whoever it was. Seph followed out of curiousity.

Two specks on the horizon quickly became humanoid figures and soon, in blaze of energy the two people landed in front of the group.

"Krillin, Dende, you're back!" Gohan said excitedly.

"Yeah and we got a Dragon Ball too," the short bald man said, indicating the massive ball in his grip.

Seph had heard the Nameks in Jepu's town describe it but this was his first time seeing one. The thing was huge and gold with red stars on. Seven of them to be exact. Seph liked counting things for no reason too.

A small Namekian, clearly a child, smiled when Gohan broke out in a big grin. "Grand Elder Guru was kind enough to assist us. But you should go too Gohan."

Gohan frowned. "I should?"

"Yeah," Krillin said, nodding. "The Elder Guru can unlock your potential for you. He did it for me and I'm way stronger now."

Seph hear Naya snort as Gohan made sounds of admiration. Probably found some reason to think Krillin's strength was worthless.

"So who are all the extra people?" Krillin asked.

Before Gohan could answer, Bulma cut in, "First of all let's get the Dragon ball out of the open."

"Ah right," Krillin said sheepishly.

Everyone settled back inside the cave in a circle and Krillin and the Namekian Seph came to know as Dende gave an account of their visit with Grand Elder Guru. Then Gohan told Krillin about how he retrieved a Dragon Ball with Naya and how he had met her and Seph. Then everyone got to discussing the next move.

"So Frieza has five Dragon Balls and we have two," Krillin was saying. "That means Vegeta doesn't have any at all. He's going to come after us at some point."

"Isn't that what we're here for?" Seph asked.

" _You_ are here to defeat Frieza and save Namek," Jepu said flatly, his gaze rock steady. He was obviously not going to allow a change in the agenda. Seph could not sense energy so he'd asked Rikku… he knew Jepu had the power to back up that statement.

 _If he's so strong why doesn't he take on Frieza himself?_

"Yeah we're just helping," Naya said. "Although, Vegeta was part of the deal. If he's coming after you, staying here is also a good option."

"Well, Son-kun will arrive tomorrow if everything goes according to plan," Bulma volunteered. "He can protect us from Vegeta."

Krillin and Gohan grinned, Bulma smiled. Clearly, Son was special to them.

"Seems you're the ones with a problem then," Seph said.

Everybody looked at him.

"What?" he said, his brain fumbling to figure out why he'd said that. Then it came to him. "How are you going to get the other five from Frieza?"

Naya gave him a wry look. "You know usually it's think first, talk second."

Seph gave everyone a sheepish look.

Krillin laughed. "Well, he's right anyway. How _are_ we going to get the rest from Frieza?"

"I can help you bust in," Naya offered. "I need to check on Kin and Hiyori anyway. It's odd that they're not back yet. If all went according to plan, Frieza should be down."

"Doubtful," Jepu said, "considering they're not here yet."

"This has been bothering me for a while," Seph added. "But where's Rikku?"

The dark expression Naya had been wearing for most of the day returned. "I don't know."

"It's still late afternoon," Dende spoke up. "We can search for them."

Seph had not seen her smile the entire day but with that simple phrase she was smiling. "You don't mind?"

Bulma smiled. "Not at all. Besides we need to know what's going on."

"She says it like she's the one actually going to search…" Krillin said, tracing a circle in the dirt.

Seph agreed. Bulma was so controlling it was annoying, especially when she kept deciding things for people and never once pitching in. And she would give silly reasons too, like "I'm too beautiful for that".

Krillin flinched when she glared at him.

"A-anyway Gohan," he continued nervously. "The Grand Elder Guru can power you up too. You've got amazing potential within you. I'm sure if he brings out your full potential you'll be crazy strong. Maybe enough to match Vegeta. It's a chance we can't miss."

Gohan nodded, then frowned. "But what about the search?"

"We'll handle it," Naya said. "Go."

Gohan reluctantly stood up and walked to the cave entrance. Krillin followed him to give him directions.

Seph heard some part of it… "Don't worry, they'll know you're coming. I told them I'd send you."

Naya stood up too. "Let's go. I'll check the space ship."

"I know the wastelands," Jepu volunteered.

"I'll stay here," Dende said. "I'm no good at these things."

Seph nodded. "Same."

Krillin rejoined them. "Everyone ready to go?"

Naya nodded. "Yeah. Let's move out."

 _ **Rikku**_

I slept in bursts. I was never quite comfortable enough to sleep in one fell swoop, I hadn't been for a long time… long before even now. When I did sleep for a good amount of time it's because I was too tired for anything else. Thoughts… they tended to keep me busy, naturally I had so many of them.

 _Why couldn't I fight back when Kin pinned me? That was pathetic! You used to be better than this…_

I woke up again and found him hanging opposite me, still out cold. Zithis lay in the corner with his arms folded, his legs crossed and his eyes closed. Hiyori too was unconscious.

 _Must be night time…_

I stared through the hole in the side of the ship at bright daylight and thought wryly, _What passes for night time here anyway…_

My thoughts drifted once again. They tended to do that. They would consider one thing, branch to another thing. Consider it from multiple perspectives, argue each perspective against each other all the while leaping from subject to subject.

 _It's how you organize yourself. You make sure that at all times you have at least three different thought processes working on the same subject under consideration. One is purely your subjective view, one is your empathic view, that is viewing yourself with the eyes of another or others, and lastly your objective view. It's usually pretty silent that one._

 _Let's not forget your imaginative thought process too. Intuition is one of your strong points._

 _I am conversing with myself in my head. I have officially gone mad._

 _No._

 _Yes._

 _Ok yes. But also no. Can't really call a mental exercise a conversation now can you?_

 _Can't you?_

 _Dunno._

I breathed in and out, slowing the onslaught of thoughts. _Consider…_

 _Problem: The gap between my enemies and I is increasing. It will increase for the foreseeable future. This is the worst case scenario. I need a way to fight back._

 _That's what you made your Crush Cannon for. In fact that's what you designed all your skills for Maximum damage, minimum effort._

 _There's no point in a bullet that is easily dodged._

 _There is a point, you just need to set it up right…_

 _Fair enough. But with an enemy faster and stronger than you, your setup will most likely have you killed before you get to the bit where you fire._

 _Distract them then._

 _Mental games only last so long and work so often. Especially when your opponent is smart._

 _Doesn't need to last long._

 _If you want to build up enough power to do damage, yes it does. Especially since you need to focus that power. Let's not forget that in the worst case scenario, mind games won't work- at all._

I sighed and wiggled in my restraints to get more comfortable, then retreated back into my thoughts.

 _Is this about damaging your enemy or fighting him evenly? What is the goal?_

 _I aim to fight on the same level as any opponent, regardless of power level._

 _You can already do that._

 _I'd hardly call it fighting on the same level._

 _Correction: could._

 _Or should the correction be "would"?_

… _.I don't know. And even if the question is not " Can I?" but "Will I?" I still don't even know how I did it. I just did it._

… _._

 _The key is opportunity…_

 _Well would you look at that the big man finally speaks…_

 _Please don't tell jokes. Joking with yourself is beyond weird._

 _You just called yourself weird you know that don't you?_

 _Of course I do. Silence, you. Me._

 _Skills and one's familiarity with them, accuracy, speed, physical strength, striking speed, kinetic vision.. anything at all that one has learned, trained, been born with or gifted with from weapons, techniques and styles to physical and mental attributes. All these are tools. Simply tools. But the tools available are what define the opportunities one can utilize. Seeking to control the battle is pointless. There are only ever the opportunities. In anything, there are only ever the opportunities._

 _I see… My opponent has opportunities they can use as do I. With every move we make new opportunities appear, old opportunities disappear and reappear. Opportunities to attack, to defend, to counter and so much more. No matter how strong you are, without the opportunity to use it your strength is meaningless. The key is opportunity and the key to opportunities boil down to the tools you possess. If a tool proves ineffective, use another one. This is why no matter how strong you get no fight is guaranteed victory._

 _Got it in one big boss. No matter how powerful you may be a whole lot of cheese and bad luck will put you down quick enough._

 _Wait… cheese?_

I frowned. There was thinking contradictory thoughts from different perspectives and there was this.

 _I'm not going crazy am I?_

 _Oh we could totally follow that line of thought._

 _Actually, let's finish this one first._

 _K. Suggestions people._

 _People? It's all me though._

 _You get the idea. Don't be a nitpick._

 _You could also try to anticipate and negate your opponent's opportunities._

 _In moving to negate an opportunity you create an opportunity._

 _That's fine so long as it's an opportunity your opponent can't use._

 _Oh and what would these opportunities be?_

 _It's subjective. Differs by opponent and by the tools they possess._

 _There is still the problem of damage. There is no point in smacking around someone you're not even hurting._

 _Well that's the point isn't it? No matter how strong your opponent is, if they don't ground themselves in the air or on the ground they can be pushed back. As long as they can be pushed back, they can be fought. So long as they can be fought, they can be beaten. How will depend on the tools you possess._

 _The question is not can I fight. The question is not even can I win. There is no such thing as a truly controlled fight. But I have an answer now._

 _But really cheese?_

 _I could fight and have few opportunities to attack for any number of reasons. I could fight and have several more opportunities to attack also for any number of reasons. Environment. My tools. What matters isn't winning. It's making the most of every opportunity I can find and use._

 _And now, you have grown wiser. The job is done._

 _-no seriously cheese?_

I opened my eyes. Everyone was still asleep, the suns had not moved much. I estimated that not much time had passed. An hour… maybe more.

I sighed, tired but unable to rest. Still I had reached a solid conclusion and I had learned more about fighting simply through reflection and analysis. Putting it into practice would be something else entirely, but I was imprisoned. I had nothing but time.

I breathed in held it… then out. Then I closed my eyes once more. Not debating but this time visualizing.

 _Kin in his monster ape form, Zithis and Frieza stood before me in a line. I leaned forward onto my toes and kept my senses focused on them. Kin stepped forward first with a grin._

" _I remember you…"_

 _ **Zithis**_

He sat against the wall for goodness knows how long, in a corner where the sunlight would not reach him. The prisoners had remained docile. The boy and the girl remained firmly unconscious and Rikku remained true to his word. Zithis had watched him fall asleep and wake up several times… the sleeplessness of a troubled person. A sleep he was well familiar with.

And then Zithis himself fell asleep, making sure to maintain his cuffs even within his mentally withdrawn state. He long ago began substituting sleep for meditation. It was a poor substitute but considering the alternative, the suffering was worth it.

That was until Zarbon called for him from the entrance to the torture chamber. Now here he was facing the blue skinned alien in the medical bay while Vegeta floated in the tank next to them.

"What do you want Zarbon?" Zithis said flatly.

Zarbon was clearly displeased but kept his temper well. "You're the only one who can make those constructs of yours. Chains and weapons and such. Obviously I need you to detain Vegeta once he's done here."

Zithis frowned. "And I look like your lackey do I? That one's your problem."

"You just love being superior don't you?" Zarbon hissed, leaning in close, fury twisting his handsome features.

"I could care less," Zithis replied. "What I can tell you is I'm not taking on any excess baggage. I'm not handling your responsibilities. You guard the Prince."

"Too much of a challenge for you is that it," Zarbon said acidly, a taunting smirk on his face.

Zithis remained impassive. "Posturing is worth nothing to me. Whatever you think, you're going to guard him yourself."

Zarbon glared. Zithis stared back, without any malice, without any dismissal, not even defiance or denial, just the flat gaze of someone who had no reason to be moved and therefore would not move. Period.

It was pride, Zithis knew. Zarbon's pride would not let him ask like any sensible person would. Unfortunately, Zithis was very big on sensible.

"If he escapes Frieza will have both our hides!"

"No, just yours."

More silence, penetrated only by the bubbling of the healing liquid in Vegeta's medical station. Zithis already forgot the name of the thing. It didn't matter. If Rikku could tell him what he hoped he could tell him, he would be with the Force no longer. The balancing act of protecting Frieza while simultaneously fighting enemies with whom the mere after shock of the battle could wipe Frieza out was wearing him down. He had run into them several times during the course of his career in the force and even before that. Always they got away. Once he was given the burden of Frieza, the mission became all but impossible. It was like they wanted him to fail.

His meeting with _her_ only confirmed it. This was punishment… for losing Void Sethra. Failure was highly unwelcome. They tended to make a point of cutting it short at the door, usually with fatal permanence in mind.

"If we're done here…" Zithis said, turning around.

"I know you're not one of us."

Zithis didn't pause.

"What do you call yourselves? The Chii?"

Now he paused. Turned.

Zarbon was smirking now. "All this time you wrote me off as another arrogant idiot in the force didn't you? Didn't realize I was researching you, checking your background. I knew finding someone as powerful and loyal as you was too good to be true."

"You say that like you weren't doing it out of jealousy," Zithis said, the beginnings of amusement toying with the idea of a smile on his lips.

The way Zarbon's look darkened was indeed most amusing. Zithis allowed the smile to show completely.

"I should report this to Frieza," Zarbon said. "And if you don't obey me now, I will."

"Really Zarbon," Zithis said. "You're telling me this now, alone. If your research was truly complete you would know how little that threat means to me. But of course you couldn't resist blackmail could you? The chance to have my strength under your command. Your beck and call. Perhaps you could even oust Frieza. That's what you're thinking isn't it?"

Vegeta and Rikku in the same room was not a good idea. On the other hand Zarbon was clearly aware of too much. Far too much. He needed to be silenced, perhaps with extreme prejudice.

 _I could kill him._

The thought bounced around in Zithis head, a thought that he had grown ashamedly used to… a thought that went against all his training.

 _It's just a pair of shackles… I could do it easily. More importantly, Zarbon is going to think he has a hold on me. Then… then will be the moment to strike._

Zithis sighed. "I will not guard him but I can shackle him for you."

The sickening grin that spread on Zarbon's face, almost made him change his mind.

 _Just you wait Zarbon. You have no idea the enemy you've just made._

 _ **Hiyori**_

She woke up in shackles that she could not snap. Bright daylight did nothing to tell her what time of day it was. Her Namekian gi was dirty and slightly frayed at the edges. Her injuries had faded. Hiyori registered all this, but one detail stood out to her above all. She remembered Kin's harsh words and she felt her heart clench.

He'd _never_ said anything like that before. Ever. For a statement said so simply in the moment it was surprisingly hurtful. Truly, words had power…

A tear fell down one cheek…

"Something bothering you?"

Hiyori jerked in surprise and looked at the opposite wall to find Rikku hanging by a pair of shackles of his own. They were made of golden ki and suspended themselves in the air, like keeping him close to the wall was simply a way of measuring his height off the ground. Upon closer inspection, Hiyori found that the same went for her and Kin.

Rikku's eyes were glazed over, almost like he was asleep with his eyes open and a certain flicker behind them was proving very unnerving. The look in his eye wasn't very encouraging. But he was _clearly_ one who had spoken despite the fact that he kept his gaze pointed downward and did not break his concentration. Hiyori didn't know how to respond, so she said nothing. Another tear…

"As much as I'd like to respect your privacy, your sniveling is distracting," Rikku's voice spoke again, as if disembodied. "Speak or forever hold your peace. I could be more direct and just say shut up too."

"I don't know…"

"Speak up now, what was that?"

"I don't know what to do…"

"About what?"

"Kin… just… I don't know…"

For the first time since she woke up, Rikku looked at her directly, his eyes losing their glassy look.

"What happened?" he said, not unkindly.

That was the thing about him, Hiyori had come to realize. He came off rude and mean but that was simply because he was straightforward. Brutally so. He was the kind of person who would say to you, "If I didn't care, I wouldn't be listening to you" and it would actually be _true_. Making inferences into his behavior was pointless because there was nothing to infer, what you saw was what you got. In his own, strange, simplistic way, he was trustworthy… kind of.

So she told him about the battle with Frieza, how it went from looking good to bad to very, very bad. She explained how she had tried to get Kin to let it go and try again later and lastly his reaction and just how hurtful it was. It was an ache within her that wasn't quite physical yet felt like she was in the aftermath of a full body blow.

"I didn't think anything could compare to losing my parents," Hiyori admitted, more tears welling up. "But those words just then…"

"They cut you deep," Rikku finished for her. "Of course they would…"

He shifted to get comfortable in his shackles. Whoever had strung him up had even made sure to shackle his tail so he couldn't use it to try anything funny. There was no getting comfortable, only small relief to be followed quickly by more misery.

"I've never asked you properly," Rikku continued, looking directly at her. "Why do you want to kill Frieza exactly? He killed your family sure, but I'm also sure you will agree that he could have killed your family and you could have decided to live lives that your parents could take pride in rather than going for revenge. Why revenge?"

It was hard to meet his gaze, not because of any sins she had committed or anything like that but simply by their nature. They were the eyes of someone who _actually believed what he was saying._ That was definitely a contributor to the unnerving quality they sometimes took on when you looked directly at him.

"It's… complicated."

"With people, you'll find it's usually quite simple. You only _think_ it's complicated."

Somehow she didn't want to speak, and yet she wanted him to understand. She knew it was unreasonable.

"Opening up isn't easy," Rikku said, eventually. "Personally, I like when people solve their own problems and leave me alone. However…"

He gave her that disturbing stare once again. "If you can't work it out yourself that's what the people around you are for. People like to talk about independence and how they're their own person. That's all well and good, but they get so busy asserting themselves they forget that they live in a world with other people and the decisions they make _can_ and _do_ affect the people around them, positively or negatively as the case may be. It's why people care what you do. It will amaze you how even the simplest decisions you make can affect someone."

Hiyori shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.

"It could be deciding not to brush your teeth in the morning," Rikku said offhandedly. "Walk around all day sayin "hey it's _my_ teeth", ruin a few appetites and earn a bad name for yourself in the successful circles."

Hiyori couldn't help the smile.

"Or perhaps give someone nausea strong enough to cost him his job interview because he's sensitive to bad smells," Rikku said. "The smallest choices we make can destroy other people's lives. Few people realize this cause people don't think as often as they should. Those who do selfishly say "well that's not my problem" and do stupid things anyway. I hope this does not include you."

With that instant the point of the statement was made clear to her. He thought the issue was important enough that it would affect her effectiveness in combat and possibly get someone killed.

"I didn't think you were one for long statements," Hiyori said, trying to ease things. Make it easier on herself.

"I didn't think you were one for jokes," he replied. "It just so happens that people cannot understand the simplest of concepts without a lot of unnecessary words involved."

Her first instinct was to read him, try to figure out if he was only helping because of combat and remembered how pointless that was. There was a reason he liked people who were straight with him. The months spent training with him on Namek had taught her a few things.

"Are you helping me just because of the fighting?" Hiyori asked.

"No, only partly," he replied. "I plan to move on with or without you, but I have grown to like you guys. I'd rather you not die."

For a few seconds she had no idea what to make of the response, but eventually she decided why not.

She sighed. "Well it starts on the desert planet we were living on…"

Rikku shifted once and remained still, all of his attention on her. She tried to not to pay too much attention to him and let her gaze and mind drift as she spoke.

"Our parents were afraid," she said, almost reciting the words, so easily did they come to her. "They tried not to show it, but it was always there. Like they had done something wrong and it was only a matter of time before they suffered for it. Like they were living on borrowed time…"

She was quiet. She knew she was. But now words were what were needed. Words were taking the lead.

"They were typical Saiyans, they loved fighting and anything to do with fighting."

 _There they were in the desert right in front of the house facing each other, grinning. Kin and Hiyori sat on the porch cheering them on in their tiny clothes. So isolated that neither of them were aware that parents weren't supposed to fight quite as violently as this._

"I think my father nearly had a seizure when Kin said he was interested in machinery. Mechs basically. I think he only really relaxed when on his next visit to the World Outpost he learned that mechs could be used for combat too. Suddenly he wanted to go up against one and encouraged Kin to build. That was their bond."

She was smiling at the memory.

" _Hey little man I bought you that engine turbine you asked for," he said, dumping the massive hunk of metal in the sand next to Kin's little open space workshop. There was no one to steal anything, besides, this far in the desert the last thing on your mind would be engine components and armor plates._

 _He was six feet tall, his face calm and his dark eyes jovial despite their shrewd look. His hair was long and curly, settling all over his head like some kind of animal nest gone wild. He wore the customary robes that helped one fight the heat on this planet and wrapped his tail around the middle like a belt._

 _His son, small with dark hair and dressed in blue robes smeared with oil and dirt grinned brightly, adjusting the goggles on his face._

" _Heheehe, this one is gonna give you a run for your money old man!"_

"Kin was so cute then," she said, almost giggling. "His face was all small and round and girly. He hadn't dyed his hair yet."

" _Ha!" Father laughed. "I'll squash them like the last three!"_

" _Nooooo! This one's gonna make you flat!"_

"Mother always said that in the contest for the title 'Strongest in the Family' she was the winner. She loved needling them both."

" _Oh dear," her mother said, sitting on the porch. "It almost sounds like he wants to destroy his father."_

 _Hiyori sat next to her giggling, uncontrollably._

" _Of course it will be me who does that first," she added, confidently._

 _Both males turned. "In your dreams!"_

 _Hiyori rolled off the porch in a fit of laughter._

"I just enjoyed being with my family. They made me laugh, they made me smile and we had fun together. Even though all we did was fight or talk about fighting. For us it was the best. I did my best to be helpful to any of them, all of them. I was anything they needed me to be, I washed dishes, was a sparring partner, I helped Kin with his engines, dad with his strategies, mum with her techniques. I was happy where I was."

 _He burst through the door and his mother looked up. "What is it Kin?"_

" _There are some purple men outside. They've got weapons I've never seen before!" he exclaimed happily. "They wanted to see you and dad."_

 _Mother frowned. "Us specifically? No one knows where we live. Not even the post. How…?"_

 _Hiyori looked up from the little drawing she was doing of her mother practicing her forms and saw the frown._

" _Is something wrong?"_

 _Her mother ignored her and stood up, tense. And then the door burst in._

"Then the Frieza Force came," she continued. "It's kind of cliché to interrupt things just when they're perfect isn't it? It was like something out of a story for me, a fairy tale kind of occurrence. The oh so familiar uniforms belonging to the scourge of the galaxy."

 _Her father had been blasted through the front of the house and collided with her. He had the reflexes to twist and catch her before impact such that she wasn't hurt, even when the roof came down on them all._

 _Hiyori began to cry._

" _Shhhh… Hiyori," he whispered, his breath only slightly hitching from the bruised ribs. "How can daddy protect you… if you're crying as if he's already dead."_

 _She stopped, eyes watering and he smiled at her, then put her gently aside and burst out of the rubble with his aura blazing brightly. She saw the laser go through his chest before he could so much as blink._

 _She heard her mother scream, charge… the sound of another laser and loud boom. She never heard a thud._

" _Hmmmph, they vaporize cleanly at least… find the boy and kill him."_

"They wanted to find Kin and kill him. They'd figured out that he had some kind of attachment, looked close enough to our mother to warrant dying."

 _A small blue robed, dirty figure shifted beside her in the rubble. It was Kin, tears streaming down his face along with snot. He had burrowed through the rubble from the back of the house to her. They hugged each other and quivered._

"But Kin hid in the rubble and we both survived. It took ages before they left."

" _All this trouble for two filthy monkeys, you dragged me out here for this?" said a voice filled with contempt._

 _Silence…_

" _We are truly very sorry, Lord Frieza."_

"That was when we first heard the name Frieza… the one who attacked us and killed our parents. For a long time I couldn't talk, couldn't speak. I withdrew from Kin because I was afraid that one day he too would be taken from me. He'd been specifically targeted. One day I would lose him. And Kin trained harder than our parents ever did combined. He thought I was quiet because I wanted revenge… he thought I was quiet because I was angry. I kept doing the bare minimum, just enough to keep him happy, keep him optimistic and strong. But beyond that I left him alone.

"He needed a goal, something to fixate on and he decided that he would confront the ones who did this. You need to understand, we lived in the middle of the desert for most of lives, the concept of jail and justice is foreign to us. The only confrontation there could be was violence. The only way to punish the ones who had hurt us. It was personal but it was a necessary kind of personal. Now…"

"It's an all-consuming kind of personal," Rikku finished for her.

She looked up, the images in her mind fading away until she found herself back in the Space Ship, suspended with some kind of construct opposite Rikku, the one she'd been talking to.

"Sorry, I lost myself for a second…" she apologized. "I didn't mean to talk so much."

"On the contrary, your talking too much made the message very very clear," Rikku replied. "I told you, people are stupid so the simplest of concepts can only be understood with a lot of words."

He _had_ said that. Hiyori blinked several times as it occurred to her that this was perhaps why he didn't like explaining things to other people. As far as he was concerned, it required altogether too much talking.

"Correct me if I'm wrong," he continued. "But this means, neither of you wanted revenge. You were afraid and he was doing what he saw as his duty."

It sounded so stupid, simplified that way. Hiyori bowed her head.

"Hey, don't get down. I told you, you only thought it was complicated. Head up."

She looked back up and met his gaze. He was smiling, genuinely smiling. It put her at her ease just a bit.

"Emotions…" Rikku said, thoughtfully. "They are your compass, not the entire map. Just because you're afraid doesn't mean do what fear tells you. I'm sure you've noticed that what Kin feels isn't duty, it's anger."

" _Run then!"_

He looked at her expression and added, "There's nothing wrong with anger mind you. It comes from your sense of justice. What is wrong will depend on how you act on it. Listen, Hiyori. This here is your decisive moment. From your entire story, you've been content to be a spectator. Nothing wrong with spectating, but there's a time and a place for everything. Right now, spectating isn't what's going to carry you forward. You need to decide if you want revenge or if you want your brother back."

"Which," he said meaningfully, "is it going to be?"

Was this even a debate?

"I want my brother back…"

Rikku grinned. Hiyori was so surprised by the reaction she almost jerked in her chains. He was surprisingly nice looking when he wasn't frowning. Since she had met him Rikku was always frowning. In fact, the only time he wasn't frowning was when he was bugging Naya and Seph. _Then_ he seemed to be having the time of his life.

"I figured you'd say that," he said, clearly pleased.

Hiyori couldn't help wondering. "What if I'd said revenge?"

"I'd have punched you."

"But we're chained up."

"Details."

Hiyori laughed, something she hadn't done properly in a long time. She laughed for minutes on end.

"I assume that's the laugh your family knew and loved," Rikku said. "That's the laugh you're going to need to wear from now on. People think relationships come free, but people are idiots. They think love is some force from outside that turns you into a fool and _makes_ you give your all for someone. It isn't. Love and relationships, even family bonds are worked for. The seed is there but you're the one who nurtures it. Everyone involved needs to _prune_ it when it's not growing the way it should be. That's what a real bond is."

He said it lightheartedly, he smirked now and again. But Hiyori knew he meant every word, and it all made sense. It explained how you could get tired of people no matter how much you thought you cared about them, it explained how people could betray their entire families. It also explained why people would sit back and watch the ones they loved do the wrong thing because they were afraid of hurting themselves. Relationships are worked for. Relationships of any kind are the result of work, care, and sacrifice… like nurturing the plants in a garden.

Riku smiled again. "Hiyori… you wouldn't happen to know how this whole gardening thing works, would you?"

It was amazing how easily he could read her, like it was so obvious. She couldn't help smiling herself.

"No… but you know what? I think I can learn."

 _ **Zithis**_

Zithis walked back to the torture chamber, calm and collected despite his situation. It seemed his time in the Frieza Force was coming to an end. Now that Zarbon knew, it was only a matter of time before Frieza knew, not because Zarbon would snitch him –he wouldn't do that yet- but because if Zarbon could find out then Frieza _definitely_ could know. Might even already know. As far as Zithis was concerned, his cover was blown. He'd milk it for all it was worth so he could interrogate Rikku then he was going to blow up this planet and vaporize everything on it, including Frieza.

" _None must know of the Chii, you understand this don't you, new boy?"_

He'd passed by Zarbon's room just to see if the man had let his guard down. It was to guage how far he had underestimated the termite hill he was only beginning to overturn. To his credit, Zarbon had been awake and sitting on his bed directly opposite the door with a knowing smirk on his face. There would be no assassinations this evening. The ensuing mocking had eaten up quite a bit of time.

Zithis finally found himself at the door to the chamber and stepped through into bright daylight, what with half of the ship being destroyed. He was about to resume his meditations when he saw that Rikku was finally asleep and the girl opposite him had a slightly more peaceful expression on her face. Something had happened while he was away, that much was clear, only he had no idea what.

Zithis sighed. Whatever it was was not his problem, tomorrow after questioning Rikku he would leave the Force, never to return again. It was rather unfortunate that yet again people had to die.

 _Outside, Frieza's Spaceship, later that night_

Naya stood on a cliff overlooking the space ship, high enough that she could see right down into the massive hole blown into its side. She could see him, hung up in the torture chamber. She could also see Kin and Hiyori and Zithis, clearly on guard duty. She was well aware of what Frieza did to people in there. Everyone in the Force had received their fair share of it.

Next to her Krillin gulped. "That guy with the red skin has unbelievable ki… and I thought Frieza was scary…"

"Yeah…" Naya said absentmindedly. "It's not like they have any scouters to sense him right now. The only people who can snitch him have no way to out him to Frieza without dying."

Krillin shivered. "Maybe even Goku might not be enough…"

"No need."

Krillin turned. "What?"

"I've decided just now…" Naya said, calmly.

She turned toward him and Krillin saw her face and Krillin was suddenly very glad that he was not the focus of her attention. Here was someone who scared him more than Vegeta did. More than Frieza did even. Here was someone who meant business and did not understand the concept of 'limitations'. The type of person in bars that took five guys to hold and yet never even noticed the weight because of how angry they were. If hate had a face, Krillin was looking at it.

"Wh-wh-what did you decide, Naya-cha-" the lights of heaven revealed to Krillin his mistake before he opened the gates of hell upon his soul. "I mean Naya-sama."

They stood in broad daylight but a shadow crossed her face somehow. A face darkened with simmering rage.

"… **I'm going to take apart the entire Force tomorrow."**

 _Space, Nearing Namek_

In the darkness of space, there was glittering. If observed from a nearby planet one would see several comets flash across the sky, and one that was perhaps a bit too big for that. But if one was prone to stargazing and ran inside to get a telescope only to find you'd lent it to old dastardly Jim again, one would find yet another comet in the sky quite some distance behind the first six and oddly quivering in its flight path.

But of course there was no such person to observe any such thing.

A man stopped in the middle of his crunches when the ship's computer announced, "ETA is now less than 24 hours. For exact numbers, please observe the screen."

He went back to his crunches.

The renowned Ginyu Force sat silently in their vessels, not even bothering to share jokes as they usually did. This time they had a rather unnerving guest along with them.

And all the while in another space going vessel, a horned figure moved. "Soon…"

* * *

 **No power levels to be posted here either. Characters remain fairly standard in this one. From here though, there's gonna be way more action. Look forward to it XD.**

 **On second thought, these ones in particular may be important later so I'll post them here now.**

 **Rikku(After recovery)-250,000**

 **Kin(After recovery)-250,000**

 **Hiyori(After recovery)-190,000**

 **All other characters remain pretty standard. K note I'm always writing this even when I don't post, hence why I'm sending all these together at once. Whenever I get access to good WiFi and I'm not doing occupied with work or anything I try to post. Other times I find waiting until I finish a set of chapters is helpful in terms of getting the story straight and deciding how everything should happen within a given time frame. I may actually do the entire Namek and post that all at once too XD**

 **Anyways, until the next.**

 **P.S. I may have to up my rating just to stay in the safe side of fanfiction. Nothing explicit per se but best to be on the safe side.**


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